The Seven Deadly Sins
by GhanditheGodofWar
Summary: Nanatsu No Taizai AU no one asked for but I would greatly enjoy! A Story of Blake Belladonna, the princess of Britannia, a kingdom overthrown by the brutal Holy Knights. Desperate to save her people, she sets out on a quest to find the most powerful knights in the land, known by all as the Seven Deadly Sins. R&R!
1. Prologue

**THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS**

 **Prologue**

In a place like Liones, it was nearly supernatural for the streets of the capitol to be even the least bit quiet. The cobblestone paths were bustling with people, always full of life… but not on this day.

On this particular day, the streets were completely silent. One could hear the creak of shop signs as they swung with the gentle breeze. Why, even the hounds of the farming villages on the very outskirts of the kingdom could be heard, bouncing all around in an ominous echo.

At the edge of the city, where the tower of the great Holy Knights was posted, where the protectors of the realm did all business they had when they were not protecting Liones's people, the homes and cottages surrounding it were completely destroyed. Hollow and empty where there were once happy families, crumbled and caved in as if a horrible disaster hadoccured.

The only sound for miles, was the clanking of metal boots as a young Holy Knight Apprentice, gripped his sword like a vice in his hand as he surveyed his environment with trembling fear.

"Hey!" a voice appeared. The young boy jumped, fearing an enemy, but slightly relaxing when he noticed the armored Holy Knight in the shadows of the back alley. "You there, boy! Come here and give me a hand!" he called.

The young apprentice scrambled for a moment before saluting the knight. "Yes sir!"

His superior walked deeper into the alley, the boy jogging behind before catching up, following the knight through the ruins of the city. "So, where're you from?" the knight asked.

"Cains, sir."

"Cains?" the man seemed confused. "I've been serving this kingdom for 40 years now, I've never heard of the place."

"T-that's not surprising sir, it's way out in the boonies." The apprentice replied, far too calm now in the company of a far more experienced knight than he should've been. The man certainly gave the appearance of being an older Holy Knight, what with his long white beard and deep voice groveled with age.

The knight turned back and looked the young boy dead in the eye, emphasizing every word he spoke next. "Now, you mustn't get flustered if you want to be a Holy Knight Apprentice."

Giving a breathy chuckle that held no mirth to it, the boy was quick to denounce the old man's advice. "I couldn't be a Holy Knight in a million years!"

The man said nothing for a good minute or so, either lost in thought or simply choosing to ignore his new companion. They were reaching the end of the alleyways anyhow, and would soon emerge to the Tower.

"Then this might be a rough job for a young fellah like you…"

The young boy could feel his own confusion slowly mutate into absolute horror as they came to the alley's exit. He could feel his lungs empty themselves of any trace of breath. His heart skipped many a beat, and he could feel his hands shaking with terror.

For among the entire courtyard of the Holy Knight's tower, were dozen of bodies. Pierced by arrows, slashed open by swords, and run through with spears. Blood painted the ground, and the horrible odor of decomposing flesh infected the boy's senses, threatening to boil over any second.

"W-who are these…?"

The old man had a melancholy expression on his face. "Holy Knights, one and all…"

The boy could not believe his own ears, nor the old knight for telling the truth of the massacre. All these men, slaughtered, defeated, destroyed, were the Holy Knights of the realm?

He backed away from the scene, unable to comprehend the reality of it all. "Wh-what happened to everyone…? I don't understand…" he stuttered, terrified in his own armor. If the most powerful warriors in all of the kingdom were completely desecrated like this… who could've done such a thing?

" _What happened?_ " the old man echoed. "They were all mercilessly butchered… and in the blink of an eye at that… by just Seven people…"

The cries of vultures overhead, joined the eerie silence all throughout Liones.

* * *

 _This is a tale of ancient times._

 _An era before the human and non-human worlds, were forever divided._

 _When the Holy Knights defended the realm, wielding their magical powers, they were feared and highly respected._

 _But among them… a group emerged that betrayed the kingdom, and became mortal enemies to all Holy Knights._

 _They were known throughout the land…_

 _As the Seven Deadly Sins._


	2. Chapter 1: The Seven Deadly Sins

**Chapter 1: The Seven Deadly Sins**

 ** _Ten Years Later… Near Cains Town_**

The sun rose over Britannia that day, calming as its warmth spread over the hilly countryside bringing a pleasant shiver with it as the coolness of night slowly faded away, until it was to return again. Through the peaceful twittering of the early birds, was the overwhelming clang of armor pieces jumbling against each other, the ugly noise traveling across the meadows as the knight swathed in the rusty metal trekked across the grassy terrain. Each step slow and clunky, but refusing to slow down, despite the thousand pounds on their back and the sun beating down on them, cloaking them in heat.

They had not seen civilization for days, but they would not stop, not until their quest was fulfilled.

* * *

Near the town of Cains in the hill-covered landscape, top a high cliff, sat a little tavern called the Crow Bar. So far it seemed to be a pretty busy day for the tavern resident's favorite waitress.

A tray of frothing mugs of beer was set in front of the group of red-faced men by a large blond girl with equally large… assets. In fact while one would suspect the men to be staring hungrily at their drinks, the woman's buxom chest stood out more than anything else in the bar.

"Okay, here you go! Thanks for waiting, drink up!" she said, her tavern wench attire highlighting her large chest as much as she pleased, giving a perky wink to her newest customers. In fact she was receiving loads of new faces today, every man from and around the town of Cains seemed to be entering and exiting the bar by the minute. It was a little crowded, but it was nothing she couldn't handle.

The tavern door opened with its telltale ring of the bell as more men bustled in to drink their fill and get a look at the gorgeous waitress. "Any room for one more?" one called.

The blond gave a pleasant wave, "Right over here!" she gestured to a table with a few empty spots, noticing a rather heavyset man hogging most of the space. Smiling cheerfully she tapped his shoulder, "Hey, you think you could move over a little?" Very little a man could say no to her mass of wavy golden hair, energetic lilac eyes, and of course her ravenous bust.

Noticing a table with a few empty mugs, she gathered them up in her arms, making sure to push her chest up as well, and carried them back to the bar for cleaning.

"For such a sweet thing, she is one hard working waitress…" a drunken man slurred, not hiding his stares at her retreating form.

The blond woman heard his comment and turned back with a proud smirk. "Hate to break it to you buddy, but I'm not just the waitress." She winked again, "I'm the owner of this place!"

"Huh?" the man gaped, flabbergasted yet still pretty drunk. "She's the owner? A pretty thing like that?"

She set the mug down behind the bar before opening the oven rooted next to the wall of booze, using a mitt to pull out what looked to be a delicious and steaming meat pie. Carrying it over she set it down in the center of the table, the browned crust and vaporous aroma filling the tavern and making the men's mouths water. "Alright! Fresh from the oven, it's the meat pie that made the Crow Bar famous!"

"It looks great!" one man among the three seated rasped, dying to have a bite.

"Let's dig in!" the three cheered, each having a large hunk of the pie on their forks as they shoved it into their eager awaiting mouths. They savored each flavor that danced across their tongues…

At least until they realized it tasted like utter crap.

The vegetables were bitter and rotten, the meat tough yet slimy, even the seemingly perfect crust tasted charred and doughy. The whole pie was somehow burnt _and_ raw all at once. The men felt sick to their stomachs. They all heaved over and upchucked the entirety of the pie and their drinks onto the table, the rest of the pie cast to the floor like it was poisoned.

The blond still wore her smirk. "You should've known, our reputation is for having really good booze… the food, not so good."

"YOU MIGHT'VE MENTIONED THAT!" the men yelled, not happy about their spoiled meal they were so excited about. One of them rolled his sleeve up his bicep while his buddies looked like they wanted to start a brawl with her. "Are you messing with us you big bimbo?!" he barked.

His friend was smart enough to stop him when he noticed the weapons guarding the girl's wrists. "Hold it, this lady's packing some serious gauntlets…" the men stopped to notice the intricate details in the black iron gauntlets adorning the tavern girl. Shining, the color of oil, and engraved with ravens with crimson jewels for eyes. Eyes that seemed to stare right _through_ you, much like the serious stare the blond was giving them.

"Well boys, looks like we've got a problem." She snapped her fingers, almost menacingly. "Now let's _fix it_."

Not that they'd ever admit it, but the three beefy men were slightly nervous, not knowing what this woman was capable of. They were surprised that she was the owner, and that she brandished such an intimidating weapon, but they were even more surprised by what came next.

Out from under the bar, waddled a fluffy little creature. "Come on, you call _that_ a mess?" it yipped, stubby little tail wagging as it trotted over to stand at the girl's side. "Really, what do you need _me_ for?"

The men felt their mouths hanging open, but could not do much to stunt their shock. "Wait, that dog, it's talking to us guys!" the beefiest one cried.

"Yeah, yeah… I'm a talking corgi! Man… what a bunch of hicks am I right?"

The blond seemed unimpressed, even casual, by the small dog talking like it was a human being. "Zwei, we've gotta get this floor cleaned."

The black and white corgi actually _rolled his eyes_ and scoffed as he leaned down to lick at the spilt food. "What a pain in the muzzle…" he grumbled as he set to work, munching and gobbling up the remains of the meat pie. "Scraps disposal is a tough gig." Was heard through his large mouthfuls, but within seconds the floor was sparkly and new, almost as if the stain had never been there to begin with. "Next time, try to drop some decent sized scraps around here." Zwei barked, scratching behind his large ear before he pattered off.

The blond raised her eyebrow, but then grinned mischievously at the three men. "You know, I've got a recipe for Korean BBQ Mutt-en chops if you guys are interested…" she chuckled to herself at her own pun, the men silently groaning in return.

Zwei bounced up with bright eyes and bushy tail at those words, "I am _so_ full! You always drop the best scraps boss!"

The rest of the customers, having overheard the conversation, all laughed lowly at the amusing scene before them. The bell above the door chimed again, oddly making every face in the tavern turn their heads, as if the sound had cut through all the chatter to draw any willing gaze to look upon what was meant to be looked at. In the doorway stood a young man, leaning against the frame, panting as he struggled to regain his breath. He looked nervous, jittery, and most of all… afraid.

"I… I saw it…" he stammered. The blond woman set a mug of foaming beer at a place-setting nearby, allowing the exhausted soul to pop a squat and have a pint or two. But strangely enough, he was too frightened even for a drink. "No kidding, I saw it with my own two eyes." He explained, the froth in his mug overflowing and dribbling down the side onto the table. "I swear, by all that's holy, it was the Wandering Rust Knight I saw out there…"

The topic seemed to cut the table's buzz as the others chimed in their own stories of the Rust Knight. "Yeah, seems like it's been on everyone's mind."

"Come on!" one scoffed, "They're just made up stories people use to scare their children into behaving! _If you don't do what I tell you, then one of the Seven Deadly Sins will come for you in blood-rusted armor! Oooooooh-aaaaaah!_ " the table burst into guttural laughter, not noticing that they'd peaked the barmaid's attention.

Her large lilac eyes gave away her intrigue. "The Seven Deadly Sins?" she asked.

The men ceased their laughter, "Oh? You mean you've never heard of them, ay pretty tavern owner?"

"Their wanted-posters are hanging everywhere, like those over there!" another pointed out, turning everyone's gaze to the board hanging on the far wall of the tavern, displaying seven wanted posters as described. Each one looking equally intimidating and, pun intended, _deadly._

"What was it… about ten years ago? Dozens of Holy Knights from all across the land were butchered so fast, that they didn't even have time to defend themselves… and the Seven Deadly Sins were the one's responsible for it. From what I've been told, the way the Holy Knight's Grand Master was murdered… it was too gruesome for anybody to even _look_ at!"

Their voices lowered so only the maiden could hear, being sure as to not frighten the pretty thing, even though not much did that with her.

One leaned in close and whispered to her, "It's said that their captain, Yang Xiao-Long, was the scariest one of them all! They say she's even brought down entire _countries_ before!"

While they told their story, the maid poured another bottle of booze into a wooden mug, letting it foam before giving the glass container a lucky tap and sliding the mug down the bar to her next customer with her usual cheerful smile.

"None of them have been caught yet, have they?"

The man telling the story chuckled mirthlessly. "Nope, not a single one."

"Well I've heard rumors that they've all been dead for _years_ now!"

Another man snorted, " _Of course_ they're dead! They have to be! The new Holy Nights would never let them live after what they've done."

"Yeah, you've got a point there…"

"Bottoms up!" the feminine chirp of the tavern owner distracted them for a moment, taking their time to gulp down their alcohol before continuing on with the story.

Once the beer sloshed warmly in their bellies, one added on, "Even now, with the king sick in bed, you can bet their still going to make sure, that the kingdom stays safe for all its people!" despite the obvious reassurance that came with the name of the Holy Knights, one question still lingered in the back of their booze-clouded, yet still functional minds.

"But, those notices up on the board get updated every single year! Doesn't that mean those seven criminals are still out there?" after a while, other parties turned to listen in on the male gossip about the Seven Deadly Sins, the possibility that they might still be alive somewhere, one of them even hiding out among them seemed possible!

The silence was broken by a drunken laugh, "Yeah well… some spooky knight walking around in rusty armor sounds pretty ridiculous to me, I mean come on!" the other men joined in on the laughter, scoffing at themselves for thinking there was such a thing as the Seven Deadly Sins in the first place! How idiotic right?

"Guess you're right…" someone said before going back to their mug.

A loud crash of metal on metal suddenly clanged from just outside the door, startling all the men inside and making some even drop their beers on the floor. Another clang came shortly after, and then another, all in time with the rhythm of footsteps as they came closer and closer to the tavern. Their steps almost sounding like those of… _armor._ The bar had gone completely silent, each man listening intently to the metal footfalls, clattering and screeching similarly to _rusted iron_.

The talking corgi, Zwei, hid behind the blond barmaid's legs, taking a quick sniff for safety. "That smells an awful lot like rust boss…" he whined.

The footsteps stopped, and the small moment of relief was replaced by terror as the front door slowly creaked open, revealing the massive form of a suit of incredibly rust-covered armor. The person inside said nothing, only taking another shaky and scratchy set of steps, raising their arms as if reaching out for something… _or someone._

 _"The… Seven… Deadly… Sins…!"_ they moaned, the helm they wore giving their voice a demonic echo.

"IT'S HERE!" the men screamed, believing this knight to be the blood-rusted knight they spoke of. Not taking any chances, every living man in the bar bolted for the door, running for their lives over the hills until the tavern's full-bosomed owner and her talking dog. Said dog was currently trembling as he clung to his blond owner's booted leg. She gently pushed him back behind the bar as she stepped forward, now face-to-face with the armored person.

Whoever they were, they were persistent, as not even a tavern full of screaming grown men deterred them from their obvious struggle just to walk forward.

"Now, _who are you_?" the woman demanded, arms crossed across her chest and hip cocked out to show her more overpowering nature. She was annoyed at this mystery person more than anything, for scaring off all her customers, who made quite the mess in their hasty exit, and making a fuss.

Their stare down went on for some time, before the knight seemed to lose balance in their armor. They stumbled forward as they tried to regain their footing, before failing and toppling backwards onto the floor with a heavy crash, their horned helmet clattering off in the process.

The large blond gasped at the revealed face of the mysterious Rust Knight, having not seen a face like that in many years…

Long silken raven hair, an angelic fair complexion, and a black satin bow tied off on top of their head.

It was… _a girl?_

* * *

 **WHAT?! Blake is Elizabeth?! yeah I wanted to do this au for a while and thought Bumblebee would be the perfect main pair for it, and you guessed it! Yang is Meilodas, Zwei is Hawk our favorite snarky talking pig, and Blake is the lovely Princess Elizabeth, although I will be changing things to have Blake's personality and Elizabeth's meet in the middle, Blake will cry more than she normally would but other than that she is the same. I won't be revealing who the other Sins and Characters are until I get further into the story. I'll be including some usual ships, one of my OTP's and some crack ships for fun, but nothing too crazy I promise, it will fit! Chao for now!**


	3. Chapter 2:A Girl with a Bow and a Secret

**Chapter 2: A Girl with a Bow and a Secret**

A few hours after their unexpected visitor arrived, the tavern owner had Zwei help her remove the dark-haired girl's armor and cloak and toss them aside while the blond woman drew her a bath. Beneath her layers of metal the poor girl's lavish purple dress was filthy and torn in places, not thinking she'd have much use for it, the blond threw it and the armor away.

After the unconscious girl was clean and redressed in an old black yukata the barmaid had stashed away for a time such as this, she rested peacefully on a quilted bed in one of the tavern's rooms while Zwei and the blond woman waited for her to awaken.

"This kid's one of the Seven Deadly Sins?" Zwei asked, sniffing their guest from his place at her feet. He then caught a whiff of something familiar, the scent of another animal nearby. "Boss, I think she's a Faunus."

The blond bit her tongue in deep thought, "Let's make sure."

Zwei yipped in disbelief, jumping off the bed in case the girl woke up and started throwing punches. The blond leaned in close to inspect her, "A sweet gentle face, but no scales…" she poked and squeezed her thighs, "Curves for days… but I'm not seeing a tail anywhere…" much like Zwei had done a moment ago, the blond took in a sniff of the girl's hair. "Nice perfume though!" she gave the corgi a thumbs-up.

He promptly rolled his eyes. The more the barmaid examined the girl's black bow, the more her theory became more accurate. "What if I…" she slowly reached out and grasped the two loose ends of the ribbon, gently pulling it undone until it fell discarded on the bed, revealing two fuzzy black cat ears. Her urges became too strong once she saw them. "I wanna… touch 'em."

The tavern owner fondled and scratched the sleeping girl's cat ears to her heart's content, "Yep! Definitely a Faunus!" she confirmed, still petting the adorable kitty ears.

"You already knew that!" Zwei barked, clearly annoyed.

Still rubbing the girl's ears, the blond failed to notice the pair of golden-yellow eyes on her guest spring open with a gasp. The cat Faunus abruptly sat up in the bed, taking note of the stranger squeezing her ears. "H-hey…" she said, her voice hoarse most likely from the rust in that armor. Yellow met lilac as the barmaid continued her ministrations, at least until the Faunus girl smacked her hand away. "Don't touch those!"

Before she could get clawed, the barmaid made up an excuse, albeit a crappy one, on the fly. "Yep! You're reflexes are just fine!" she gave the cat-girl a wink and a smile, this one more genuine than the ones she served her customers.

She looked like she was about to give the blond a piece of her mind about crossing boundaries like how touching a Faunus' ears is highly disrespectful, when she touched a hand to her head clearly in some kind of pain. "What happened…?" she asked no one in particular, looking up at the buxom blond, "How did I get here?" she asked.

The woman chuckled nervously, "Well, you walked in my bar, and then you kinda… passed out cold… on the floor."

Rather than get angry, the girl curiously looked out the bedroom window. "Your bar?"

"Yeah, the Crow Bar, it's my tavern!" she stated proudly.

"Hold on, you mean _you're_ the owner?" the disbelief in her expressive yellow eyes gave the blond the impression that a woman as… _illustrious_ as her owning her own place without the help of a husband, father, or brother was uncommon in a place like Britannia.

She scratched the back of her head, "Is it really that weird?"

The cat-girl smirked down at her interlocked hands, "Not really, it's just… I noticed those gauntlets of yours… someone could even assume you were a smith, or even a Holy Knight apprentice." The tone of her voice was cautious, suspicious, and more of a question than an observation like she made it out to be.

Looking over her dark wrist-guards, the blond moved into an old fighting stance. "You mean these old things?" expecting her to attack, the cat-eared girl reached for something on her back, a weapon perhaps, that wasn't there. Cursing her gods as she noticed it leaning against the dresser behind her supposed hostess. She clacked the metals together, only to turn and reveal that the clasps of the weapons were broken, making them almost completely harmless. "Sorry if I scared you…" she laughed, "If all you see is the surface, I guess they look pretty heavy-duty, huh? Makes our patrons think twice about skipping out on their bill."

"It's the customers who pay their hard-earned money for your terrible cooking that _I really_ feel sorry for." Zwei piped up for the first time, the dark-haired girl's eyes taking in his small and furry form before widening into saucers.

She leapt out of bed and stood in a crouch on top of the headboard, hissing at the talking corgi. "Is that a _talking dog?!_ "

"Hi there! I'm Zwei!" he wagged his stump tail and tried to jump up to the girl but she kept trying to scoot away or swat at him. Somehow, he didn't take the hint and kept trying to get cuddles from the cat Faunus.

She sneered, "My father got me a dog like that a long time ago, and he always barked in my face and chased me!"

The blond laughed at the game of _Cat & Dog_, "Did you like having a pet dog?" it was more of a joke than an actual question, but the girl's harsh features faded into a sort of melancholy.

"He… died a long time ago…" despite her outer hatred towards all canines, she seemed to at least have the capacity to warm up to them after a while.

The blond tavern owner liked that about her.

"Hey, you hungry? I could throw something together!" she offered.

Zwei shuddered at the thought of this girl wanting _him_ on a silver platter. "Do you have any mutton?" she asked. The poor corgi bolted behind his owner's legs, shaking in his paws.

"Please don't eat me!" he whimpered. The ravenette blinked while his owner burst out laughing.

* * *

Down in the tavern, after their guest had to be thoroughly convinced that Zwei would not chase her, and said dog being convinced that the girl would not eat him, the three sat at the bar as the blond prepared a proper meal for the visitor. The Faunus girl took in her new surroundings, sensing for traps of any kind laid out by her _generous_ new friend. To untrained eyes, it looked like an ordinary tavern, but from her place at the bar, the girl could not pull her eyes away from the notice board in the far corner of the room.

The one with the pinned posters of the Seven Deadly Sins.

"Bon appetite!" a warm voice broke her thoughts, laying a plate of freshly looked food in front of her. It took all of her power not to rip into the steaming meat and vegetables like a wild starving animal. Despite her growling stomach, the girl had to be cautious and tread carefully. Any piece of this meal could be laced with poison.

She stared up at the blonde's lilac eyes, and though they held no malice or emotions of suspicion, it would take more than a free meal to earn the cat-girl's trust. "First you nurse me back to health, now you're feeding me?" she asked her hostess, skepticism clear in her tone.

"Might want to taste it before you start saying thank you." Zwei warbled sarcastically.

Giving the dog a cold glare before grasping her fork, willing to take a bite of possibly poisoned food just to prove a point. Then again, she had always been called stubborn. "Can't wait." She didn't try to hide her disdain as she remained locked in eye contact with the smiling blond as she took a bite, immediately wincing in disgust as the taste hit her like a brick wall.

"What do you think? Pretty awful huh?" the blond woman laughed, not noticing the cat-girl continue to chew and swallow her disgusting meal until nothing remained on the plate. When she was finished with her incessant giggling, she met the girl's face, seeing tears running down her pale cheeks. All humor left the woman's face once she saw her guest was crying.

Even though the food was as horrid as it was, the Faunus had eaten every bite, almost as if she really _had_ been starving. "It's terrible… but still… it's the best thing I've eaten in a long while." Rather than have the blond attempt to comfort her, the cat-girl wiped her tears with her sleeve and set her silverware down on the clean plate.

"So…" the blond started, "What exactly were you doing, walking around in that old armor?"

Since the food wasn't poisoned, and the dog wasn't awful, the girl decided to tell her patrons the exact truth. "I'm on a personal quest… to find the Seven Deadly Sins."

The woman's lilac eyes did not move, nor did her expression change. Her smile was welcoming and friendly, but her eyes were stony and intimidating, as if she was hanging on every word.

Zwei's ears perked, "Why would you do that? No one has any idea whether those guys are even still alive or not." He questioned, the girl's bow twitching as her ears flicked in annoyance. "And they're serious villains!"

Before she could utter a harsh reply to the corgi, a loud rap on the door sounded through the bar, successfully startling the girl. "Open up!" a voice bellowed. "The villagers told us who's in there!"

Just outside the Crow Bar, stood a group of armored men brandishing swords at their belts and a lioness crest at their hearts. "We are the Order of the Beard of the Mountain Cat! Serving under the Holy Knights from the foot of the mountain!" in his ten years of being an apprentice, Cardin Winchester had turned from a weak boy to a formidable opponent he felt even the Seven Deadly Sins should fear. "Wandering Rust Knight, member of the Seven Deadly Sins, come out! And do so peacefully!"

Inside, the Faunus girl was gripping the edge of the bar so hard her nails were leaving marks in the wood. "What's the matter with everyone today?" the blond wondered aloud.

"Holy Knights…" the girl whispered, a bead of sweat dribbling down the back of her neck, sending a shiver throughout her body.

After waiting a good minute, the knights were getting impatient. "I don't think they're coming out…" a young man with green hair styled into a Mohawk voiced.

"This is pretty strange…" a boy with long blue hair added, "When did this tavern get built on top of this hill?"

"Yeah, come to think of it… I don't even remember _seeing_ this place three days ago…" the third knight with brown hair and a short stature confirmed.

Cardin turned and glared at his fellow knights, "On your guard." He commanded. "We're about to go up against a Holy Knight who answered directly to the King ten years ago."

His men scoffed, "Come on, there's nothing to worry about Cardin, I'm sure he's old by now."

"That's right, he's no match for fighters like us, who were trained by the best Holy Knight Lieutenant in Cains!"

Cardin disregarded their cockiness, though he respected his comrades, they tended to let their egos speak for them instead of their level of skill. He was different, he had seen firsthand the destruction caused by the Seven Deadly Sins. It was not something you see one day and take lightly, even ten years after the event. "How many times have I told you… don't underestimate them!" he snapped, "When the uprising happened in Liones, _dozens_ of Holy Knights were butchered in an _instant_!"

His right hand, the boy with the Mohawk, Russel, was quick to voice his opinion on the matter. "Yeah… about that…"

"What is it?" Cardin growled.

"Well, I gotta wonder if things weren't… exaggerated, just a little." He explained.

The taller boy grit his teeth and fixed a furious glare into Russel's eyes, "And? What are you trying to say exactly?"

Rather than let the smaller knight take most of Cardin's blows, the one with the long blue hair, Sky, if memory serves, piped up his own reply. "Well, everybody says that one Holy Knight is as powerful as a hundred ordinary soldiers, so _dozens_ of them murdered? Nah…"

Cardin grasped onto Sky's shirt so hard his knuckles were white, "I saw their bodies with my own eyes!"

"Everybody calm down!" Russel interrupted. "For now, just stand back Cardin, I think we can handle one old man." The green-haired boy pounded his fist on the tavern door, "Hey! Get out here!"

What surprised the four young men was not that their intimidation tactics actually worked, but that once the door opened to reveal who was hiding inside, they were more than a little… distracted. Before them was a tall and beautiful woman with long, almost glowing blond hair. "Hello? Who is it?" she asked, her voice like warm milk and honey.

While his brothers in arms were thoroughly absorbed in the woman's bust, Cardin remained focused on his mission. "Who the hell are you woman?!" he demanded, making sure to stand at his full height, he was ashamed to say, only came about an inch or two taller than the blond.

"Well, I own this tavern." She explained to him, not appearing the least bit shaken by his deep voice or powerful-looking build. He didn't know who this bimbo thought she was, but she was getting under his skin.

He held eye contact with her, not breaking his resolve for a regular tart like this woman, "The Wondering Rust Knight is here, send him out."

The woman blinked and sighed, turning to look into the bar, "You better come out…" she told someone rather dejectedly. Cardin smirked, he _knew_ she was hiding something.

The clanking of armor against the floorboards reached their ears as a small figure stepped into the light, effectively solving the mystery of the rust knight… and heavily injuring Cardin's pride. Waddling around in rusty armor, was a small dog in shin-guards and a horned helm. "Who is calling for me?" the dog woofed, using a heavy voice to imitate the air of a knight. "I am Sir Zwei, the Rusty Knight!"

Zwei plopped down next to the blond woman, "So, this dog is one of the Seven Deadly Sins?" Russel questioned.

Cardin scowled in annoyance, "Well of _course_ it's not!"

"How about a little respect!" the dog barked. "I'm the captain of the Order of Scraps Disposal!"

"There is no such order!"

Even though Cardin was more than a little angry, the blond woman seemed indifferent to his presence, which really rubbed him the wrong way. Any woman should fall to their knees when he walked by, basking in the fact that he was a Holy Knight apprentice and no longer some cowardly city boy. "If this dog is who you're after, you can hound him all you want!" she giggled.

"Give it a rest, boss!" the dog snipped, head butting her leg.

Cardin had had enough, he thrust his arm out towards her and enclosed his fist around a large handful of her wavy golden hair, tugging it harshly making her finally break her nonchalant façade and show nervousness in his presence. "You dimwitted harlot," he growled from deep in his throat. "You've got some nerve making fun of knights like this!"

His indigo eyes only showed only hatred and anger, but the blonde's shimmering purple orbs displayed only coldness and disinterest, as if Cardin was the least threatening person she'd ever come across.

Unbeknownst to them all, a black-haired girl with a silken bow on her head peaked out from around the side of the tavern wall, seeing an opening to escape. Though she did want to thank her hostess for her hospitality, it seemed she was only causing trouble. Cutting her loses, she took her chance and ran into the forest.

Against her fortune, Sky managed to spot movement at the edge of the tree line, alerting his comrade. "Cardin look! A girl just ran out the back!" Cardin let go of the blond woman's hair, thankfully not damaging a single strand, but she tumbled to the floor beside Zwei.

"We must inform Lieutenant! She must be the Wandering Rust Knight! After her!" not giving the blond a second thought, the men all gave chase into the forest after the mysterious Faunus girl, leaving the woman and her dog behind.

Zwei's ears twitched and he scratched them worriedly, "Oh no…"

The buxom blond blinked, staring out into the woods. _Well that just won't do at all…_


	4. Chapter 3: The Sin of Wrath

**Chapter 3: The Sin of Wrath**

Running had always been her strong suit. Be it running from her sisters while they played tag as children or ignoring her problems until they went away naturally, she had finally thought she had found a cause she couldn't run from no matter what it cost her, but now here she was, sprinting through a forest trying to evade a group of Holy Knights.

"Seize her!" one of them yelled after her. Pushing herself to be faster, the dark-haired Faunus ducked under a fallen tree before leaping over a cluster of gnarled roots. Her efforts seemed to be in vain, she was still weak from spending days walking with little food or water, and the knights were beginning to catch up to her.

Cardin could see the girl's retreating form as he chased her, "I can't let a member of the Seven Deadly sins escape, I've got to capture her!" he muttered to himself. "If I manage that, then I can finally be appointed to Holy Knight Status!" his musings were interrupted by the grunt and cry of his comrade Sky falling to the ground, along with Russel shortly after. "What's going on? What's happening?!" he called back, only to meet the coal-black eyes of that tavern dog from earlier.

"The dog is attacking!"

"You're not getting away!" the corgi howled. Cardin growled, everything seemed to be standing in his way today, even stupid bimbos and her dog.

He broke through the trees to a cliff, but the girl was nowhere in sight. "Where's the girl?"

Zwei head-butted the knight in the back as hard as he could, throwing him off balance and causing Cardin to topple off the edge of the cliff. "Down you go!" he barked, the large boy screaming on his way down. "Nothing personal Mister Wannabe, but I just earned _twice_ as much food tonight!"

As for where the girl in the bow disappeared to, at the last second the blond tavern woman scooped her up in her muscular arms and hid them both in a tree. "Why do you keep saving me at the last possible minute?" the cat-girl asked, "Not just once but…" she was cut off once the feeling of her cat-ears being rubbed caught her attention. "…Twice?" the blond woman couldn't resist and started fondling the kitty ears when the girl wasn't looking.

Zwei whined, "Seriously lady, feel free to punch her whenever you feel like it."

The Faunus girl hummed in disapproval, pushing the woman away and climbing down the tree without her, the blond following after she gave Zwei a thumbs-up. Once they were both on the ground again, the dark-haired girl stood off from her saviors, looking out over the expanse of the wide, green landscape with a look of absolute contempt.

"So…" the blond began to ask. "Why are you looking for the Seven Deadly Sins anyway?"

Rather than respond right away, the girl clenched her fists, her whole body tense as she struggled to hold in her emotions. She had always run away from anything remotely difficult in her life, her home, her family, all to find a group of rebels who might not even exist anymore. But even still, she'd started this mission, she planned to follow through.

"I want to ask them… to help me stop the Holy Knights."

"Are you serious?" Zwei asked. "Why in the world would you want to do that? The Holy Knights are the King's men! They're the ones who protect Liones! They're _real_ heroes!"

Her cat ears bent back on her head, pinned down by her anger. "What if I told you… that the Holy Knights were behind a plot to start a war in our country?" she questioned, not meeting their eyes. The blond listened intently to every word, believing piece by piece of what the mysterious Faunus told her. "Days ago, all save for the king himself, the entire royal family was arrested, and they're being held against their will by the Holy Knights."

The blond gasped. "Does that mean the King isn't really sick in bed?" Zwei woofed.

"That's just a cover story the Holy Knights are using… I don't know _what_ they think they'll accomplish by driving the nation to war… but now, they've begun drafting the people of the kingdom, taking men wherever they can get them… preparing for war everywhere you look." Even from the top of the cliff, the girl fixed her eyes on a farm not far from where she stood. She saw a young boy pulling a bale of hay, his father coming to help him carry his burden when it became too much. The two of them laughed as they continued to go about their work. The girl sighed, "Soon… their reach will extend all the way out here."

"That's not good!" Zwei whined.

"Yeah…" the blond agreed. "Tough break huh?"

"Wow, you don't any empathy at all boss."

The woman ignored her dog. "So… how does this tie in with the Seven Deadly Sins again?" she asked.

The cat-girl's bow twitched, "If there's even the slightest hope of preventing the Holy Knights from doing this…" her head whipped around to finally meet the pair of lilac eyes that had been watching her as intently as they were. "I know they're the only ones who can!"

The blond held her hands up, "Just checking here… you're trying to find those guys, even though you know what kind of people they are?"

Her ears beneath her bow perked up; she remembered hearing stories of the legendary group when she was growing up. About how they were more powerful than a thousand Holy Knights, and that they served under the King before supposedly betraying the kingdom. Her father spoke of their loyalty often, how could they so easily betray the realm when they were so loyal?

" _The Seven Deadly Sins…_ the most vile order of knights the kingdom ever produced, made up of seven vicious, bloodthirsty criminals… each one branded with the mark of a beast." She explained. "Ten years ago, when they were suspected of trying to overthrow the kingdom, the knights launched a full attack that scattered them to the four winds."

"Well, if you believe the rumors… they all died a long time ago." The blond added.

"Such amazing people couldn't possibly let themselves get killed!" the girl snapped, her fists coiled tight.

The tavern woman hummed, "But they are criminals… aren't they?"

The girl's ears pinned themselves back once again, her voice lowering into an angry hiss. "The Holy Knights are the ones causing the suffering of the people right now!" seeing nothing but cold observance in those lilac eyes, the cat-girl took in a deep breath to calm her anger before continuing. "Long ago, when I was small, only five or six years old, my father told me stories about them… and that's when I learned they were the most powerful knights-!"

The echoing clang of heavy armor interrupted her words, her ears springing up and her nerves staggering on end, sensing something around the three of them. The grass beneath her feet sunk no more than a slight of an inch, but before she could call out a warning to her companions, the ground under them collapsed entirely. The earth along the cliff crumbled in a perfect crescent shape, throwing them off the edge and into the chasm below.

"Oops…" a man in excessive armor with a sword clutched in his enormous palms mused as he stood on the edge of the cliff where the three characters fell. "I forgot to confirm whether or not they were the people named in the report." He sheathed his weapon, leaning over the edge to conclude that his targets were indeed eliminated. His frame was large and bulky, each limb bulging with muscle beneath his armor. "Oh well… those two are minced meat down there, no doubt about it."

He turned back to the three knights that alerted him of the disturbance, "That sound good to you?" he asked them.

"But Sir!" Russel cried, "Cardin was still down there!"

The man scoffed, "Then put three fatalities in the paperwork."

The three of them gasped in horror, while it was true Cardin tended to get a big head, they would never disregard his demise as if it was just another casualty. He was their comrade! "You can't!" Sky protested, "Lieutenant, that's low even for you!"

The Holy Knight Lieutenant lowered his voice into a deep growl, "How about we make it six fatalities then?"

The men backed away in fear, bowing their heads in submission. "No, you don't need to do that… please forgive us!"

From down beneath the cliff, a figure suddenly leapt up onto the safety of the grass, revealed to be the blond tavern woman. She carried Cardin on her back until she dropped him on the ground, humiliated, but alive all the same. Zwei plopped down from her shoulder, and she held the Faunus girl tight in her arms.

"Look! It's Cardin!" Russel said, pointing to the woman who saved their brother in arms. She might have saved his life, but Lieutenant did not look the least bit pleased about it.

"You!" he bellowed, "How dare you survive without my permission! I won't be responsible for the fatality paperwork!"

"Who asked you anyway?!" Zwei called back. The blond woman still held her companion in a bridal carry, analyzing the situation as well as the armored man. She sensed that this would not end peacefully, and at least wanted to protect her mysterious friend from harm.

"Hey," she whispered to her, "Are you awake?"

The cat-girl blinked up at her, still uncertain of why the woman was so adamant on helping her. Knowing when to accept help however, she gave a single firm nod. "Okay, when I signal to you, run into the forest, got it?" even if she was confused, the girl still nodded once more, confirming her compliance to whatever plan the blond had in store.

Lieutenant scanned over the two women, "Tell me," he asked his men. "Which one of them would you believe to be a member of the Seven Deadly Sins? Neither bears any resemblance to the wanted posters…" he looked them over once more, for the first time noticing the black-haired one wore a bow on her head. He began to notice gold embroidery stitched into the dark fabric, as well as the familiar sigil of the White Fanged Lion. The symbol flown on every flag, and worn by every banner man in Liones.

It was the sigil of the King.

His large dark eyes widened a bit, realizing the identity of one of his targets. "Aha…" he muttered, beginning to move towards them. "Fate is smiling upon me today… the crest on that ribbon you're wearing is from the Royal family… which means that you are in fact… the Princess Blake Belladonna!"

The Faunus girl, now known as Blake, gasped. "Hold on…" the blond said to her, finally setting her down. "You're a princess?"

Zwei yipped, "Hold up! Are you really Blake Belladonna?! You're the third princess in the royal family!"

Lieutenant drew closer and closer to them, his grin curved into a rather nasty smirk. "A decree has been issued from the capitol, to determine your whereabouts… the order was to capture you alive and in healthy condition." His eyes sparked a murderous glare. "But if you lost your life in a tragic accident…"

The blond woman clenched her fists and gave Blake a shove towards the forest. "Go, now!" Blake did as told and took off with Zwei in tow into the forest, with nothing but hope that her blond companion would follow.

"I can't get captured! I can't give up yet!" she shouted into the wind.

The tavern woman stayed behind and bent into a fighting stance, not about to let Lieutenant touch the princess. "I summon thee!" the man said as he pulled his sword, "Accidental Death!" he swiped his sword across the air, sending a wave of magical energy throughout the forest. Blake felt the vibrations of power and managed to duck before the entire forest was ripped from its roots in a single blow.

Her eyes were shut tight as she covered her head, hearing the crashing of trees all around her. Once it was silent, Blake slowly opened her yellow orbs, only to meet a pair of lilac ones above her. "Hi there!" the blond woman greeted cheerfully, almost nonchalant about the display of power they were up against. "You alright Zwei? You seem okay."

"Seriously?!" he barked, "I've totally got the yips here!" he turned up his nose and howled before scurrying off into the distance, leaving Blake and the blond to face Lieutenant by themselves.

He scoffed at the little dog, "No matter, what's one dog to me." Blake was clenching her fists as sweat beaded on her forehead, her ears were pinned back and she was shaking. She was tired of having people get hurt for her. First that young boy fell off a cliff and nearly lost his life, now it seemed the blond and her dog were willing to face the same fate. And for what? A princess who just ran away if given the chance.

 _No more._

The princess stood up and faced Lieutenant, trying to show no fear. "Blake?" the woman questioned. Blake ignored her and strode forward. "Hey… what're you doing?"

She did not stop moving towards her capture, and even possible death. "There's a chance for you to escape… you should take it."

Her purple eyes blinked, "Wait, hang on, you just said that you couldn't afford to get caught or give up!"

"It's easy to say that… when people aren't laying down their lives for you… maybe if I surrender now, you can still get away safely… no one has to die." Her voice was unusually calm, and while it was true she hated herself for being so helpless, she didn't see another way out. Lieutenant was too powerful and Blake was without her own weapon. She would have to surrender in order to protect her people.

Lieutenant only grinned madly as he swung his sword once again, catching Blake by surprise and nearly tearing her body in two. Something crossed her vision before she was pulled hard to the right, out of the path of the man's attack. It left a deep cut in the earth, but the princess was unharmed.

The blond woman leaned over her feline friend's body, shielding her from damage, not a scratch blemished the woman's skin, but the left sleeve of her brown leather coat was torn beyond repair. "Why do you keep doing that?!" Blake hissed. "You need to get away while you still can!"

The blond looked back at Lieutenant, who was charging up for another blow. "I think he wants to make sure neither of us makes it out of her alive."

"Why…?" she heard the princess whisper. She looked down into her squinted yellow eyes, beginning to gather tears in them. "You took me in and fed me when I had caused nothing but trouble… I'm searching for the Seven Deadly Sins, that alone is enough to terrify anyone who hears the name! I traveled alone for days… scared for my life every moment of it… walking around in that rusty armor hoping nobody would recognize me." Against her efforts, a few droplets leaked out of the corners of her eyes. "I was fine on my own… but now you're here, being foolish and saving me when you should be saving yourself… but even so, I don't want to see you hurt, so you shouldn't get involved in my problems… not when I don't even know your name!"

The blond woman took everything in. The princess of the kingdom, had traveled without end searching for nothing but a name, risking her life every second of every day, all for the sake of her people. She triggered something in the blond. A dream… or the memory of a dream.

Of a young girl… brave and devoted, just like the princess… wrapped in red.

The woman smiled, and told Blake her name.

"Yang Xiao Long… if you really want to know."

The girl beneath her gasped, her eyes widening as if to try and take in the blond woman's presence in the new light she had just stepped into. Blake recalled the wanted poster depicting Yang Xiao Long back in the tavern. The woman in the rough sketch looked _nothing_ like the flesh and blood Yang Xiao Long before her now. "You… It can't be!" Yang chuckled at her disbelief. "How can you… you're just…"

Cardin abruptly awoke then from his unconscious state, gasping for breath as he struggled to form words. "Where'd she go?!" his comrade's concerned gibberish was nothing but white noise in his ears. "That woman with the black gauntlets…"

Russel rubbed circles on his back, "It's alright man, Lieutenant is about to take care of it."

"You idiots!" he snapped, "We shouldn't get her angry at us! The whole kingdom could fall!" his brothers only stared at him. "When she saved me from the cliff, that's when I saw it! She's the _real thing!_ The most dangerous one of them all! The symbol's right there on her shoulder!"

Blake stared up at Yang, only now seeing the tattoo of the great beast on her skin. "That symbol on your arm… that's a… a dragon!"

Lieutenant rushed up from behind them and brought his sword down upon the two, his powerful strike exploding in a glowing mass of fire, but then his cheek split open and blood spurted out. The large man then felt the full extent of his blow surround him and burst out, only having the reverse effect of what he intended. He was knocked back, thoroughly weakened by the attack that came from his own magic. "How is this possible?!" he roared. "My blade should have cut you in two! But somehow… _I_ was the one who felt the full force of the blow… how can that be?!"

Yang was in her fighting stance, her arms raised and her gauntlets glinting in the sun. "And what are those?" Lieutenant observed, "Broken gauntlets?"

"Yang…" Blake muttered, "Is that actually who you are… truthfully?"

The blond warrior said nothing, her focus entirely on her enemy, whose eyes began to grow larger as her name in his ear registered as a forgotten memory now beginning to resurface. "Wait a minute… now your face is beginning to look familiar… but, if that's who you really are how can you look exactly the same as you did?!"

Yang cracked her knuckles and her neck, a smirk curved onto her lips, and the glint of battle in her shining lilac eyes. "Alright, time's up… you figured it out yet?" she teased.

Lieutenant finally spotted the branding of the great golden dragon etched into her upper arm, the full extent of who he was dealing with hitting him with the weight of a thousand suns. "No…" he said lowly. "It _can't_ be… and yet… _You still_ _dare to exist!"_

He lifted his great sword high above his head, using all of the strength he possessed to strike down on the woman who stood before him now with every intent to destroy. His blade met the earth between her boots, the ground around them erupting outward in a cloud of dust and energy.

Yang only moved slightly to the left, scratching her gauntlet along the blade to direct it elsewhere, before she brought up her fist and connected it to the man's jaw. The black metal pulsed with power and the red eyes of the ravens seemed to glow with pure energy. Lieutenant's face morphed into one of shock and horror as the wind picked up around him, gathering magical power like a great storm that was about to strike him down like a god.

"So it's true… this incomprehensible…" his expression twitched, "Extraordinary…" a flaring light flooded his vision, "Power… it's… _like that of the legend!"_

His entire world turned a blinding white, as Yang's blow detonated throughout the entire mountain and into the sky, taking every hunk of earth, rock, and tree caught in the crossfire with it. The blast echoed all throughout the valley as the ground shook and the sky trembled in its wake.

Lieutenant was launched into the distance, his once strong armor shattering like glass as he fell from the sky, his screams of pain fading into silence.

Yang stood proudly at the top of the mountain, her hair actually glowing as live flames licked out from her golden locks.

"The Seven Deadly Sins, The Sin of Wrath, The Dragon Sin… _Yang Xiao Long!"_

* * *

Once things had settled down, Yang dusted off her hands and adjusted her gauntlets on her wrists. She then turned back to meet the pair of yellow eyes that had not looked away from her since she had properly introduced herself.

"Well Blake, I guess this means you found your first Sin, doesn't it?" the princess only blinked, probably still unable to form words after the show Yang put on earlier. "So listen… as far as the six others go, I've got some business to discuss… so I've started looking for them myself." She explained. "I've been using the tavern as a way to gather information… but if I had a pretty girl to pull in a larger crowd… I bet we'd see a lot more info heading our way."

Blake blinked, and Yang smiled, holding out her hand. "How about it? Coming with us?" the Faunus girl's expression changed to one of pure determination.

She gave a nod, "Yes."

Back with the group of rag-tag knights, Lieutenant was only now beginning to regain consciousness. "Lieutenant, hang in there sir!" Sky said.

The large man ignored them all. "Request reinforcements from the capitol… tell them this is of the upmost importance!"

The haunting howl of a wolf caught his attention, and before he knew it, a wolf the color of tar had burst out of the earth, fragments of bone jaggedly emerging from its coat as its red eyes burned and its howl echoed across the land.

"Perfect timing huh boss!" Zwei yipped from the gargantuan wolf's back.

Yang scooped Blake up in her arms before climbing up onto the wolf's back using its piece of bone. "Hey Beo! Thanks for showing up when we needed it!"

"Wait, _I'm_ the one who brought him!"

"Alright then! Let's head out to the next town guys! Come on Beo, up to you now!"

The wolf the size of the Liones capitol turned its nose up and howled into the sky before putting its paws forward and trotting off towards the horizon.

Yang, Blake and Zwei all stood atop the mighty demon Beowulf, the princess entirely immersed in her thoughts about the Dragon Sin before her very eyes.

 _Was our meeting the work of chance, or providence? And what awaited us… despair, or hope? That was how the adventure began for Lady Yang and I… as we started our search for the Seven Deadly Sins._

* * *

 ** _Approximately 38 miles east of Cains Town_**

Many miles away, in the dead of night, sat Fort Solgres, a Holy Knight's post not far from Cains. Within the fort, Lieutenant had kneeled before his commanding officer, trembling in fear for what he had in store for the knight who failed to stop the Sin of Wrath from continuing to live.

"The Seven Deadly Sins…" a man uttered, silently drawing towards the map depicting all of Britannia painted on the wall, his crimson red hair and black horns atop his head glinting in the torchlight. "I hope it's a real one this time…" he said to no one. "I've waited ten long years… for the day I can bring about their destruction."

Around his leg, a snake hissed and coiled around his ankle. It's red eyes glowing as it watched him.

* * *

 **Yay! Chapter 3! And it'll only get better from here i promise you! Now I've seen more than a few guesses as to who in the Rwby universe will represent who and which Sin, I can't specifically tell who which sin is who, but I can tell you who in Rwby is apart of the Seven Deadly Sins**

 **Yang (but you knew that)**

 **Nora**

 **Qrow**

 **Glynda**

 **Sun**

 **Penny**

 **and Weiss**

 **I'll leave the rest of the guessing which is which to you guys! and if you get em right, i'll give you a shoutout! Chao for now!**


	5. Chapter 4: The Sword of the Holy Knight

**Chapter 4: The Sword of the Holy Knight**

 ** _Liones Kingdom, Capital City. One Month Ago…_**

The moon was covered that night, when the castle of the royal family that once brought so much warmth to the citizens of the capitol, had become cold and tense. The air was heavy, as if a storm was forming all around the palace.

"Open this door!"

"There's no place left for you to run!"

"Your Majesty!"

Holy Knights banged their armored fists against the thick wooden doors of the barricaded throne room, trying to break through and attempt to arrest the King and his youngest daughter, who had hidden themselves inside. The third princess, Blake, a young teenage girl dressed in a fine white coat over her leather chest-wrappings and pants, gripped the pommel of the sword on her back, growling as she silently dared the traitors to break through and try to take them.

Blake's father, the king Ghira, placed a large hand over her head, shockingly gentle for his size. Her anger seemed to melt away as she turned and looked into the deep golden eyes that matched her own. "Blake…" he whispered, his voice hoarse and rough from the sickness he battled. "You must go."

"No, I won't escape alone! I won't leave you father!"

Ghira sighed, petting her uncovered feline ears, "I will be fine, but you have to leave, now!" as much as his youngest child was stubborn, she had gotten it from him. This was not a time for stubbornness however.

Blake seemed horrified at the thought of leaving him to the Holy Knights while she fled. "But…" she began to protest, only to be cut off by her king.

"Go! Before the Holy Knights find you!" his eyes burned into his daughter in a blazing authority she had not seen from him since he fell ill all those months ago. As much as Blake wanted to object, scream and cry until her father either came with her or she was captured alongside him, she knew there was no other way.

She would have to leave him behind.

The wooden door crackled and splintered as a burning smell filled the throne room before bursting in an explosion that completely destroyed the only thing standing between Blake and her capture. All she could bear to see before she closed the small secret door concealed behind the throne, was the Holy Knights flooding into the room. She leaned against the door, tears burning as they fought to escape, but she held them in as she turned away from her father and ran down the dark tunnel.

Blake grit her teeth as she vowed to come back for her father, her family, and her people.

* * *

 _Blake Belladonna, third princess of Liones, was driven away from the castle by the Holy Knights' traitorous uprising._

 _To right this injustice, she searched for the legendary rebels, the Seven Deadly Sins._

 _But the princess was being pursued by the Holy Knights, and just as she needed a helping hand, a woman from a tavern came to her rescue._

 _This was no ordinary woman however…_

 _She was the captain of the Seven Deadly Sins, Dragon Sin Yang Xiao Long._

* * *

In the present day, in the grassy landscape of expansive hills and smudges of trees here and there, a thundering set of paws walked along the earth. The demon wolf Beowulf continued on his directed path, carrying his master's cottage on his muscled back.

Within the tavern, the Crow Bar, sat the princess Blake Belladonna, staring out her window over the vast kingdom, as far as her eyes could see. Her thoughts took her far away from where she was, back to her father and his own whereabouts. It still tore her up inside, the fact that she had left him to the mercy of the Holy Knights while she escaped with only the sword on her back.

"Hey Blake!" a warm voice sounded from the doorway of her room. The black-haired princess met the lilac eyes of the legendary Dragon Sin, Yang Xiao Long. What shocked Blake more than anything was that someone as friendly and inviting as Yang could be the most powerful person in the kingdom. She certainly _looked_ like the simple barmaid she was personifying. "Could you come downstairs for a minute?" she asked.

Blake blinked, and then gave a nod. Yang smiled before turning and bounding back down to the bar. The dark-haired girl placed a hand on her chest, in an attempt to slow her pounding heartbeat. There were times when she questioned if the Dragon Sin was being genuine in her display of generosity; agreeing to take back the kingdom and fight hundreds of Holy Knights for a girl she barely knew. Such hospitality was not common in the world Blake knew. Not when a person of Faunus origin sat on the throne.

She reached under her mattress and pulled out a scrappy looking journal, leather-bound and branded with the crest of the royal family. The White Fanged Lion. The cover was cracked and the pages had turned yellow with age, but she was glad she had managed to grab it from its place under the floorboards of her bedroom in the castle, so she would have something from her old life to hold onto.

Sitting at the bare desk next to the window, Blake opened up the old diary and began to write.

 _This isn't just some dream, it's real. I actually did it… I found Lady Yang, one of the legendary Seven Deadly Sins._

 _I think…_

* * *

After Blake had finished her newest entry and hidden her journal, she had come down to the bar as Yang had asked her. Only to be surprised by the blond woman holding up a new set of clothes for her to wear. She had thrust them into the princess' arms and shoved her into the lavatory without another word.

Seeing as the clothes she'd worn for the past few days had been all but shredded by the encounter with the Holy Knights that had led her to Yang, Blake swallowed her objections and disposed of her mutilated coat and pants, wiggling into the rather high-riding shorts Yang had given her.

Once she had finished redressing and exited the back room, Blake found it a bit less easy to breathe. "So… what is this outfit exactly?" Blake asked, tugging on the black scarf wrapped around her shoulders. While true it wasn't the worst thing she could've received from the blond, the princess found the tight white shorts and black vest much more restricting than her common choice of combat attire, and the cropped tunic that showed more than a bit of her stomach made her slightly uncomfortable. However, the violet leggings and black thermal sleeve were not bad, and Blake did get to keep her black boots and bow.

Yang gave a thumbs-up, "It's the tavern uniform!" she explained.

"Way to put your pervy thoughts on display for us boss…" Zwei huffed.

Blake sighed through her teeth, a bit more conscientious about snapping at a warrior as deadly as Yang, but annoyed by her perverse implications nonetheless. "While I'm waiting on tables you want me to keep track of rumors and collect information about the possible whereabouts of the Seven Deadly Sins, right?" the Faunus princess was unsuccessfully trying to ignore the blond circling her and examining the way her figure looked in the tight outfit she wore, not attempting to be discreet even for Blake's sake.

"Some intel on the Holy Knights would be good too." Yang then had the gall to tap the princess on her butt, even giving her a light smack, thoroughly startling Blake. Her cheeks reddened and she almost mewled, only for her ears to flatten against her head. "Don't worry, I'm just conducting the mandatory size-check." Yang explained, completely nonchalant to her violation of the princess' personal space.

Blake slapped her hand away, hard. Zwei biting onto the tall woman's long hair and tugging, "Boss! You're gonna scare away the one person who can bring people in!"

As she watched the scene unfold, a question bloomed in Blake's mind, one that had bothered her from the back of her head ever since she had taken up shop in one of the tavern rooms. She remembered how easy it was for Yang to defeat a Holy Knight of Lieutenant's caliber, she had broken his armor and crumbled his pride like it was nothing.

If bringing a Holy Knight to his knees was as easy as it was for her, what could she have done to the kingdom that had made her so universally hated? "Yang… there's something I want to know." She said, the blond pushing Zwei away and turning her full attention onto her guest. "You, and the other Seven Deadly Sins, are you really as wicked as they say? If so… what crime did you commit to be known that way?"

Yang scratched the back of her head, as if she was trying to remember _exactly_ what it was she had done. "My crime huh… well…"

Blake thought about how she had immediately offered aid in her cause, not asking for any payment or favors in return despite the fact she was the princess of the realm. Perhaps people just didn't understand what kind of person Yang was, after all… not many could say they had made an effort to help a Faunus girl with no identity, princess or no.

"The truth is…" Blake met her eyes. "Ten years ago I traveled through Liones stealing every pair of stylish panties I could get my hands on!"

The princess nearly fainted. "You… you've got to be kidding me!"

"I am." Yang smirked and her cat-girl companion glared, not appreciating her joke. "Okay…" she admitted, "What I actually did was stalk a thousand Faunus girls with cute tails and groped them all!"

"Is this a joke?! Do you have any idea what kind of privacy that violates?!"

"It is."

Blake grit her teeth as her ears bended back, "Quit messing around! Or was your crime really just being a deadly pervert?!" she was practically shaking, her rage threatened to boil over and she almost dared reach for her sword. How daft must you be to even consider crossing blades with a Sin?

Yang blinked and shrugged, either brushing off or flat out ignoring Blake's offense taken from her jokes. "Maybe?" the princess did _not_ look the least bit amused. Maybe it was time for the Dragon Sin to get some new joke material… hey! Pun were always in style! "I guess it's not terrible for you to in-Sin-uate that!"

The feline girl's eyebrows furrowed, making lines of annoyance on her forehead. She sighed, not bothering to feed into her companion's attempt at humor, but she did condone her efforts to make laughs without offending the race of the King and third princess of Liones.

Then, the entire room tilted violently to the side, throwing Blake completely off balance and almost onto the floor. Luckily, Yang was quick enough and caught the princess in a bridal carry, that amused grin still beaming on her face. "Be careful!" she chirped.

"Knock it off boss!" Zwei barked, the cat-girl wiggling out of the taller woman's hold with a huff.

Outside, Beowulf shook his head and scratched behind his ears with his massive back paw, giving a thundering bark that signaled to the people inside the house on his back that they had reached his instructed destination. "Hey, we're here!" Yang called from inside. Her blond head emerged from an open window in the tavern, Blake shoved in next to her as they looked out over the bright and peaceful looking village they had come to. "This is our next wellspring of information, Vanya Village!"

Beo began to pulse and breathe out blackened smoke, each puff of air turning to a storm-colored fog that consumed his being. Within seconds his entire body was shrouded in it, the storm clearing away revealing the demon to have vanished without a trace, leaving only an ordinary tavern sitting atop the hill.

After making sure everything was in order, the trio began to make their way down the hill and into town, passing a few farmhouses on the way. "I usually buy my liquor anywhere I can get it, but Vanya stuff is _special_." Yang explained. "Best water you can find is right here in this village, and with the gruit growing down by the river it's used to brew Vanya Ale, it's got fans far and wide!"

They came to a stone bridge passing over a small creek, but what was strange was the bed was completely dry. Not a speck of water in sight. "Well… it _used_ to, now those famous waters of theirs are bone dry." Zwei yipped, sniffing at the dried and cracked remains of the riverbed.

Blake could see what they meant; even all the herbs along the bank were withered and dead. "I wonder what happened to it…" she wondered aloud. They continued on to the village square, where it seemed the entire population of Vanya was gathered. "Why is everyone gathered? A festival?"

"Hey! What's up you guys!" Yang chirped, bounding up to a couple of the village men, squeezing between them and throwing her arms over their shoulders.

They were only partially surprised until they recognized her telltale head of golden hair. "Oh, it's the barkeep…" one muttered.

"So what's this festival for ay?" she asked them. The men's faces morphed from uncaring to furious in less than a heartbeat as they roughly shoved Yang away.

One of them barked angrily, "This look like a damn _festival_ to you?!" he threw his arm out, gesturing to the largest group of muscled men pulling on ropes or attempting to pry by hand what appeared to be a sword lodged in the ground. "We're trying to pull out a sword some _Holy Knight_ jabbed in the ground!" he spat.

Yang cocked her head curiously, "He stuck it in the ground? Why'd he do that?"

An old man came up beside them, his face as withered and aged unwell as the dying plants along the absent riverbank. "Days ago, a Holy Knight brought his wrath down upon us… he infused his sword with Aura, pierced the ground, and locked away the water under our village."

Some of the villagers trying to pull it free were becoming increasingly angry, "If we don't do something about this soon… we'll lose our water _and_ our gruit too!"

"Then we won't have any Vanya Ale… _damn!"_ a man cursed.

Blake blinked; Aura was something almost everyone in the capitol of Liones possessed. The ability infused one's body with magical power, some stronger than others, at the very least it kept one from being inflicted with harm. At most… it could lead a Holy Knight to ruin an entire village. "A Holy Knight…" she hissed under her breath. "Could it be the one we fought a few days ago?" she asked Yang, referring to the one who tried to take her life.

Yang looked at her, "You mean that Lieutenant guy with the tattoos?" she then laughed aloud. "No way! He wasn't even a Holy Knight, he was just a lieutenant!" The princess nearly choked. How could a soldier who wasn't even a legitimate Holy Knight of the realm have almost defeated her?! "Trust me, the real ones are a _whole_ lot worse."

The men around the lodged sword were drenched in sweat and panting, exhausting themselves from pulling at the stuck blade for so long. "Only the Holy Knight who infused his aura into the blade could pull it free… breaking the news isn't going to be easy… but I'm afraid our village is done for…" the old man slumped, beaten and battered by the realization alone.

Blake clenched her fists. This was a new low for the Holy Knights, making an innocent village submit to them by breaking their will and drive. It was despicable. It was _disgusting_. It was…

"Aw give me a break!"

Both Yang and Blake turned their heads to the smaller voice that had entered the crowd. It was a small boy with olive skin and tufts of brown hair atop his head. He resembled a farm boy with his rough gloves, rolled up sleeves, and muddy boots. His face was also covered in dirt and grime, as if he had slept in a barn his whole life. "A Holy Knight's sword stuck in the ground is nothing!"

A few of the villagers scoffed in disinterest or simply rolled their eyes, turning away from the boy as if he wasn't worth their time. "Oh great… it's _Oscar_ …" Blake heard someone groan through her sensitive cat ears.

"If my buddies, the Seven Deadly Sins, were here… that sword would be _gone_ by now!" he proclaimed, flicking his suspenders like a big shot.

Yang blinked.


	6. Chapter 5: A Boy from the Village

**Chapter 5: A Boy from the Village**

Yang considered herself a woman of many friends as well as enemies. In her travels as the Seven Deadly Sins' captain, she had come across an epitome of interesting people. Knights and simple villagers alike. However, she cannot say for sure that she even remotely knew this boy who claimed he was in fact _best friends_ with the Sins.

" _Quiet Oscar!"_ a woman screeched. "Whose fault is it that we're all stuck in this predicament in the first place?! Of all the things to say… why must you mention those criminals too?"

The young boy, Oscar as the woman said, cringed slightly. Yang noticed the wringing of a dirty yet colorful hunk of fabric he had haphazardly jammed in his back pocket, as well as the sweat beading on his forehead. Perhaps he didn't like being the center of attention in the way that was different from what he expected. "Yeah! She's right!" another villager accused, pointing an angered finger at the boy. "We don't need to make the Holy Knight angrier!"

"Do you have a grudge against us or what kid?!" it seemed that every villager in the square was beginning to gang up on the young man, all for a single mention of the criminals they so feared.

Yang saw him grit his teeth. "No!" he defended. "Come on… that's not the reason I did it!" his plea did not lessen the glares directed at him, each pair of eyes smoldering down on him, putting so much weight on his small form.

One man with shaggy hair raised a fist to the boy, "We've had it with all your mischief and all your lying!" a few children began to pick up rocks off the ground, a girl wearing a faded red dress and a bonnet chucked one at Oscar as hard as she could.

"You're such a _jerk!"_ she bit. Oscar seemed unaffected by this, mostly because the little girl made up for in strength what she lacked in aim, for her rock missed her target by a foot hitting Yang right in the nose, leaving a… less than painless bruise.

Oscar clenched his fists, his eyes burning as he tried to act as if the hurtful words of the villagers didn't bother him. "Well I…" he was half-content to just run off and never show his face again, but his anger burned more than his wounded feelings. "I hate you guys!"

"Yeah well guess what? We hate you even _more_ Oscar!" another young boy shouted, he and the other village children continuing to throw any rocks they found at the offending boy they so apparently despised. It seemed their aim was not as direct either… as every rock thrown struck Yang in one place of her body or the next. This bothered her little however; she scooped Oscar up and started running back in the direction of the Crow Bar.

 _"Why are they hitting me?"_ she wondered aloud.

"You're all nothing but jerks!" Oscar cried, the villagers getting rowdier by the second until the old man put a stop to it.

"Stop it! All of you!" he bellowed, most of the citizens huffing in annoyance and returning to their original task, as if the public humiliation of a boy as young as Oscar was nothing to blink at. Blake scowled. Was this really all the doings of one Holy Knight? Not only threatening Vanya's livelihood, but having them turn on each other as well?

She watched Yang take the boy back to the tavern, hopefully to shield him from any more anger, or at the very least calm everyone down some. Zwei's ears twitched, "Sure looks like we picked a lousy time to come down here…"

The village elder sighed, "Deep down he's really an honest, well-meaning boy."

Blake once again noticed how tired the old man looked. He did not carry the authority of a mayor or any form of leader to these people. He must have had to take up that mantle when Vanya had been forced out of its peaceful prosper and into a twisted version filled with distrust and contempt from everyone around. She clenched her fists in contempt.

"Come on Zwei." The princess did not give the dog a chance to follow or not, beginning to make the walk back to the tavern and meet up with Yang.

She sincerely hoped the Dragon Sin was taking this as seriously as Blake was.

* * *

"Well I've definitely done things that sucked less…"

Oscar shut out the barmaid's words, settling instead to sit at an empty table and fiddle with the old scarf he kept in his back pocket. He did it when he was troubled, but as of late, it was becoming withered and ragged from his constant use of it.

"So tell me kid, why did everyone back there…" the buxom woman kept trying to get him to talk, but he wasn't exactly in the mood until she brought up how the villagers had been treating him like a traitor.

He turned up his nose and sneered at her, "Don't call me that! You're a kid too!"

Despite her… luscious curves… Yang could pass for a girl of only seventeen years old, so she could see how a pubescent boy like Oscar could get so easily confused. "No, I'm really not, actually."

Even if Oscar was genuinely surprised by this revelation, he acted like he didn't care enough to pay attention and decided to change the subject, something he learned to do when adults asked him questions he couldn't answer. "What is this place? A tavern?"

Instead of grill him, Yang played along. "Yeah, the Crow Bar, it's my place."

"I'm hungry!" he whined.

"If you answer my questions, I'll feed you." Yang replied, not falling for any of his tricks.

Oscar hummed in thought, before looking off as if the blond woman wasn't worth the argument. "Nope. Food first."

The Dragon Sin groaned under her breath, seeing that the boy was not going to submit to her, but also noticing the thin sound of his stomach grumbling at the mention of a meal. Maybe he just wanted food in general, to see if she would actually give it to him, to see if someone whose entire village had turned against him could trust her, a complete stranger.

Sighing in defeat, Yang went behind the bar and did not come back until she held a plate of roasted hen and potatoes in her grasp, a meal that was sure to fill him up, presenting it to Oscar as it steamed up into his nose. "That looks great!" he exclaimed, very nearly salivating at the smell alone. "I can't wait to dig into this!" he tore off a thick meaty drumstick and tore out a big bite, barely chewing before getting ready to swallow and bite off another piece.

That is until the taste hit him.

Feeling sick, Oscar bent over the side of the table and lost his lunch all over the tavern floor, losing what remained of his appetite.

"I never said it was going to be any good." The blond barmaid said, nonchalantly pouring a mug of beer for herself before taking a seat across from the now _not_ hungry boy. "So, is it true? All that stuff about you being friends with the Seven Deadly Sins?"

While Yang did feel a pinch of sympathy for the boy, she prioritized what she came to Vanya to do; find any and all information about her missing comrades. So far, Oscar seemed to be her only lead. It was true she and the boy had never met before, but it had been ten years since she last had any contact with her team. Oscar could have at least met _one_ of them. She wouldn't put it past them if one of them had gotten drunk off of Vanya's good stuff and told the young boy endless tales of glory and bravado.

Oscar fixed a pout in her direction. "Your food gave me amnesia." He was content to sit and grumble about petty subjects for as long as it took, nose upturned and every trick in his book at the ready, but then he took a light sniff of the air. It was faint, and almost undetectable by anyone outside of Vanya, but to him it was unmistakable. The sweet scent of honey and just a hint of heather blossoms from the riverbeds. "Wait a minute! Are you drinking Vanya Ale?"

Yang was taking a big gulp of it, nodding and giving an affirmative hum as she let the tingling liquid cascade down her throat.

"Hey should a kid like you really be drinking that?" Oscar asked.

The blond rolled her lilac colored eyes, "I already told you, I'm not a kid."

Once again, the village boy ignored her. "Man… it tastes _really_ good doesn't it?"

He was a bit annoying sure, but Yang could not help but smile at the pure admiration in his voice. "Yep."

"It's the best, sweetest, full-bodied… mmm…" he was practically drooling. "Or so I hear from the adults…"

The tavern doorbell jingled, signaling the return of Blake and Zwei. The potato-shaped dog waddled off somewhere while the Faunus princess crossed over to where Oscar sat, ignoring the chipper greeting from her blond companion, and a look of cold calculation on her face that made the boy shudder. What did she plan on doing to him? Was she going to throw rocks at him too? "So Oscar," she started, leaning in close as if she was interrogating him. "I hear you're quite the prankster, with a bad sense of humor, the chief of your village even told me so."

Oscar glared from under his eyebrows, "What's it to you?" he snipped. "Who do you think you are, my mother?"

Blake looked like she would love nothing more than to knock him over the head and be done with him, but she knew that wasn't how you dealt with children who misbehaved, the worst thing to do when a child acts out for attention is to give them the attention they expect. Try to understand and solve the problem instead of taking the easy way and yelling at them. Blake pulled up a chair and sat beside Oscar.

She took a deep breath before speaking. "When I was young, I was often scolded by my father for pulling pranks."

Oscar expected an earful about how he was a good-for-nothing, snot-nosed brat who could stand to learn some manners, all the other village women had said that in one form or another. "Yeah right…" he scoffed. "And that means _what_ to me?"

Blake ignored him. "I really wanted his attention… I was the youngest, even if I was the only true-blooded child he fathered." The young boy kneaded his scarf unknowingly, the small, almost unimportant fact about her wanting attention for being the smallest in her home grabbing his interest. He held his tongue and listened. "One day, I remember I climbed the tallest tree in the garden hoping to give him a god scare." The princess' bow twitched as she recalled the memory. "He turned as pale as a ghost, and started up the tree to try and bring me down… this man who'd never climbed a tree in his entire life… but then, he lost his footing and hurt himself, but luckily it wasn't serious." She could still remember him not being able to move from his bed for weeks, Blake never leaving his side until he recovered, babbling tearful apologies even after he had forgiven her and laughed off his injuries as if they were mere knee-scrapes.

"I still remember as if it were yesterday… if he had died that day… I never would have forgiven myself."

She didn't see how Oscar tightened his grip around his scarf, ripping it out of his pocket and holding it in his fist. "I don't do this kind of stuff because I don't feel for them… they're all really good to me." He stared down at the scarf in his hand, thinking about how he got it and who it was that had given it to him. The Faunus girl put a hand on his shoulder, not as intimidating as she first came across.

"Why do you then?" she asked.

The boy's eyes burned, hazel eyes never leaving the colorful fabric he held so close to him. "My mom and dad were always going from place to place… I was even born on the road." He explained, remembering how his mother would have the scarf tied around her neck all the time, and his behemoth father would carry Oscar on his back when the boy was too tired to keep going on his own. "But when we stopped in Vanya a few years ago… there was an epidemic, and they got sick and died." He remembered how kind the villagers had been to let two traveling strangers be buried in their cemetery, how the innkeeper woman who had housed them all held Oscar as he cried at the sight of his parents disappearing beneath the earth. He smiled softly, "That's when the people of the village took me in, and raised me as one of their very own, and for a while I was really happy… but… I wasn't a part of anyone's _real_ family… I got jealous cause I knew I'd never get what they had… I started lying… and pulling pranks."

He hadn't noticed the tears running down his cheeks until he felt the tracks they left become warm marks on his face. Oscar used his mother's scarf to wipe them away, feeling like in a way it was really her drying his tears and comforting him like she used to. "Is that why you put the bug in the Holy Knight's drink too?" Blake asked, her voice soft and gentle. The village elder had told her what it was Oscar had done to deserve such scorn, and why the Holy Knight had lashed out so harshly.

"No!" he slammed his fist down on the table, startling the two women. "I did that cause the Knight treated everyone in the village like they were crap!"

Oscar recalled hearing that a Holy Knight would be visiting Vanya for a taste of their annual brew of ale, he didn't care much for it but he knew that everyone in town prided themselves on their ale. The village elder had poured the bottle himself, saying how everyone was so proud of the ale they'd brewed that year. He was in the crowd that day when the scarlet-haired Holy Knight had taken his first sip, everyone around him completely silent in order to hear his praise of it.

 _"Disgusting."_ He had said. The villagers were all stunned, the Knight even went on to say that he'd rather drink horse piss than the swill that was Vanya Ale. The poor old man had looked as if he'd burst into tears at any moment, many other matching that description. Oscar had never felt more humiliated and angry. How dare this jerk insult everyone, when they had put everything they had into impressing him and his pompous hide. The farm boy pulled up a fat maggot from the ground and chucked it into the Knight's glass.

The ale bubbled as the bug sank to the bottom, the Knight's lip curling in contempt, and through a mask made from bone, the villagers could all feel the iciness pulsing in his hidden eyes. He threw his glass to the ground, shattering it into pointed shards. The sound of his curved, blood-red sword being pulled from its sheath echoed in their ears. The Knight raised his sword as if to strike down the offending boy who had disrespected him.

"No, don't!" the elder begged, "Please, forgive the boy, sir!"

The horned Holy Knight heard them not, and his sword began to ebb and ooze a dark red aura that resembled dead and wilted flower petals. Rather than kill the boy, the Knight turned his sword in his hand, and stabbed it deep into the cobblestone all the way to the hilt. Everyone in Vanya felt the power that emitted from his blow; they all stared in horror at the ugly cracks formed from the lodged blade.

"Everyone in the village put their heart and soul into making that ale!" Oscar explained. "But he insulted them! Holy Knights are no-good _bastards_!"

Yang listened intently, from the way he described the Holy Knight who cursed the village, it sounded a lot like… _no_ … there was just no way it was him. Her first question still remained unanswered, however. "Okay, and what about you saying you're friends with the Seven Deadly Sins?"

Oscar blushed and scratched the back of his head, "Well, I lied."

The Dragon Sin sighed in disappointment, taking a sip of her own ale. "Too bad, got to admit I kind of had my hopes up."

"What made you tell a lie like that?" Blake asked, wondering what could've possessed a boy to throw in his money with world-renowned criminals as so many people have said.

The young boy retied his scarf through his belt loop. "The Seven Deadly Sins are wanted by the Holy Knights aren't they? If they're really going after them, doesn't that mean that the Seven Deadly Sins are the good guys?"

Blake blinked, exchanging a look with Zwei, who had bounded up while Oscar told his story. They turned their gazes to Yang, who was gulping down her mug of booze as if it was water. She finished and looked at them, "What?"

A commotion coming from outside suddenly caught their attention. The sound of many people shouting and cursing echoed from the townspeople less than a mile away from the tavern. Oscar gasped, knowing that it was the villagers of Vanya causing the ruckus. What were they doing now? Were they still trying to pull the sword? Or had the Horned Holy Knight come back to torture them some more? "That's coming from the village!" he didn't wait for the barkeep or her waitress to follow nor did he care if they did. He had to get back to Vanya before something terrible happened because of him.

"Oscar wait!" Blake tried, but he was already running away from the tavern.

The trio stared after him, the princess hoping he wouldn't do anything reckless.

* * *

 **Hi! And as you probably already know yes Adam is Gilthunder, and I'm sure you have questions about the discrimination against Faunus in this universe. Humans and Faunus aren't as violent towards each other as they are in Remnant, but there is the underlining bias they have against each other. Ghira is the first Faunus king Liones has ever had, and their is some hate against him for being a faunus as well as having a Faunus for the third princess. The Rwby characters who will be playing Margaret and Veronica are both human and adopted by Ghira. I'll elaborate more as the story continues. and so far no one has guessed right on the Sins, but good luck guessing anyway! Chao for now!**


	7. Chapter 6: The Curse of Vanya Village

**Chapter 6: The Curse of Vanya Village**

The people of Vanya Village were a stubborn folk, who did not openly show their fear, but it did not stop the women from ushering the children off the streets, and the men telling their wives to lock themselves in their homes while they stayed. For two Holy Knight Apprentices had chosen to ride into the village to pay a visit and see if they had removed the sword yet.

Though the apprentices severely lacked the powerful air a regular Holy Knight possessed, they still held as much power over the people of Vanya.

"Now listen up! You peasant scum!" one of them spat, as scrawny as he was he held more weight over the strongest man in the village, all because of his title. "If you haven't pulled out the Holy Knight's sword by sundown… then we're going to charge you _ten times_ the normal product tax!"

The villagers all gasped and stared on in horror. "That's insane!"

"With all the water dried up, we can't even make _one_ bottle of ale, much less ten times that amount!"

The other apprentice, a rounded stub of a man with a mustache too big for his sneering upper lip. "That's your punishment." He scolded the villagers like children. "Not only did you insult a Holy Knight, you also claim to be friends with those known criminals, the Seven Deadly Sins!"

The farm-men who had been attempting to pull the sword before cursed under their breath, damning Oscar for all the suffering he had caused the innocent people of Vanya. If he hadn't opened his big mouth, _none_ of this ever would've happened!

A blur of color darted past the farmers, and the Knight Apprentices, grasping onto the hilt of the lodged sword and holding tight with every bit of strength he could muster. It was Oscar, and he _would_ pull this sword!

"Oscar, no!" the innkeeper woman cried.

The apprentices stood on each side of the scrawny boy, sneering and snorting in laughter, mocking him as his weak frame kept pulling at the sword with little results. "The little big-mouth…" the tall one scoffed. "It's not going to be any fun at all if he's the only one."

The fat one got up in Oscar's face, "So We're charging _twenty_ times the tax now!" The boy could smell the Vanya vintage wine on his breath, a foul odor that made his blood boil and his determination spike as he pulled harder.

The farmers and innkeeper all began to shout their objections. "You know you can't do it Oscar!"

"Stop it kid! You're only making things worse for us!"

 _"That's enough!"_

The people of Vanya all fell silent as the village elder strode through the crowd, his once weary features now pull back in a spark no one in Vanya had seen since the sword was planted. "Chief…?"

The elder spoke, fire licking through his every word. "Who insulted our great skills and wounded our pride as ale-makers? Was it Oscar? No!" the innkeeper woman folded her hands and looked down at them, feeling shame for not protecting the boy better as she should have. "Wasn't that boy only expressing the feelings we were all having, deep down inside?"

The villagers all felt shame in their actions. They had made an outcast out of an orphan, thrown rocks at him, ganged up on him in the village square, all for a crime they all would've committed if he hadn't been brave enough to do so. Oscar had not stopped his task of pulling the sword, and though it was not budging, he wouldn't give up. A pair of soft hands covered his over the hilt, halting his efforts and drawing his attention to the innkeeper.

She gave him a kind look, "Auntie?"

"The Chief is right…" she began. "You aren't to blame for this Oscar." His grip on the sword softened, the men of the village coming forward and one by one standing by Oscar's side.

This did not bode well with the Holy Knight Apprentices however, as they were growing more and more irritated by the sheer nerve of the villagers for paying them no mind and not fearing them as they should. "Hey! You people hear what we said?! Pour the beer out of your ears! It's _twenty times_ now!"

The men ignored them as they ushered the innkeeper away, "You just leave this to the men-folk." They did not tell Oscar to move aside, but instead grasped the hilt of the sword right along with him. The boy nodded once, every strongman in Vanya coming forth with ropes to tie to the sword, each man pulling with all his might, the young farm-boy at the front of the display. The villagers roared as they heaved, giving it their all.

The apprentices were red in the face as they choked on their booze, _laughing_ at the people who were fighting for their lives and the lives of their families, and the life of their home. They sat there chugging ale as the men pulled, but the sword was not even moving a fraction of an inch.

"Come out…" Oscar commanded, gritting his teeth so hard he feared they might break under the pressure, his hands blistering an angry red, but he ignored the pain. " _Come on!"_

The knights cackled louder. "He looks so desperate!"

"What a bunch of morons!"

The drunken fools were lost in their delight over Vanya's suffering, until the curvy and nearly salivating figure of a woman walked right past them, her long locks of golden hair glinting in the sunlight. They both reached for their mugs, enjoying the show that was her figure, when they noticed their booze was missing from their grasp.

"Anyone who doesn't appreciate good, quality booze… doesn't deserve to drink it." It took them a moment to notice their mugs held in the blond woman's grip, her honey-sweet voice disinterested and almost humored by them.

Vanya's people still held fast on the sword, but the ropes were too weak and snapped into ribbons, sending the men to the ground. The innkeeper woman and the village elder gasped in horror, dust and dirt flying everywhere as the men groaned in defeat.

The sword would never be removed.

The shimmer of flowing blond hair shone through the cloud of dust, the mug of ale held up to her lips as she savored every drop of Vanya's most precious substance. To them, it was worth more than any weight in gold. It was their life. Drunken swine who only wished to treat it like the cheap stuff shouldn't waste it. "That hit the spot." She mused, setting the empty mugs down next to Oscar, who lay exhausted in the dirt.

Yang strode towards the sword, casual and relaxed in her steps, even as everyone in the square stared flabbergasted at the buxom woman. "Sorry guys, I don't have any money for that drink." She apologized, wrapping her own strong grip around the Sword of the Holy Knight, and giving Oscar a cheeky smirk. "How about this?"

Slowly, almost as if the world watched anxiously, Yang pulled the sword up from its wound in the earth with an echoing whisper of aura infused metal. She held the freed blade above her head, its scarlet gleam catching the light in its curved reflection.

The villagers could not believe their eyes. The strongest men all in tandem had failed to do what a seemingly ordinary barmaid could! Yang gave them a smile, presenting the sword for all to see, as a symbol of their newly regained freedom from the Holy Knights.

"That's… impossible!" one of the apprentices gaped. "Only a Holy Knight could pull that sword out… how… how did she _do_ that?!" the two of them stared, their awe shown in their open mouths and sweaty red faces, and though they were still a bit buzzed, they believed what had just transpired to be the absolute truth.

A low rumble in the ground vibrated around them, growing louder and stronger every second. "What's that sound?" the two sweat-coated men exchanged a look, for the first time realizing they were sitting directly over the old well.

Before they knew what had come over them, the wood beneath them splintered and broke, a mighty spout of cool, clear water burst forth from within the well. It showered over the village square, sparkling in the sun like millions of diamond droplets, raining down as if gifted from the gods. The villagers cheered and cried with glee, playing and running in the waters that had returned to them, as well as their freedom from the Holy Knights.

The apprentices groaned, trying to piece together all that was happening right in front of them, when the blond woman who had appeared out of nowhere, stood before them with the Holy Knight's sword propped over her shoulder like a trophy.

"I think this is yours." With that, she tossed it at their feet, discarding it exactly as it was. A broken shackle that would no longer imprison this village. The men quivered with fear, quickly taking the sword and running with their tails between their legs, whimpering like children as they disappeared into the distance.

Blake watched in awe, knowing she should expect power like this from the most deadly woman in the kingdom, but still taken aback by her sheer force of will and compassion. A criminal who only care about how much blood she has shed, would not commit such a kindness without wanting anything in return.

It was… _amazing. Incredible. The power of the Seven Deadly Sins._

"Hey, miss?" Yang turned to meet Oscar's eyes, the boy seeing her now in an entirely different view. When they had first met, he had thought her nothing more than a barmaid who asked too many questions, but now there was this… _air_ around her. An air of power and confidence he hadn't ever seen before. "That was so amazing! Are you really…?" he asked, knowing deep down that it had to be her, the one the Holy Knights always spoke so harshly of.

She smiled down at him, giving a cheeky wink. "Yep! I _am_ the proprietor of a fine drinking establishment, its true!"

Oscar blinked. "That's not what I meant!"

The blond leaned down and ruffled his hair, "Well…" she began, whispering in his ear and gesturing behind him. "Isn't there something you need to be doing?" the boy tensed, knowing exactly what she meant. He turned and gazed upon the villagers of Vanya. The innkeeper woman, the elder, and all the farmer men stood with bashful, if not apologetic looks on their faces.

It was the elder who broke the silence that stretched between them. "Oscar… we were wrong… can you ever forgive us for treating you that way?"

He reached for his scarf, wanting to knead it in his palm and feel his parents there with him. "What right do I have to forgive you…" he muttered. "It's not like I'm part of the village." It seemed he was all too ready to reject their heartfelt apology, but Yang would not have any of that.

She gave Oscar a gentle shove forward, "Go on…" she smirked.

The farm-boy snapped at her, "What do you mean _go on_? After all… I really don't belong here."

Blake placed a hand on his shoulder, looking down at him with soft yellow eyes that silently told him he should forgive them. He remembered her story, about how she had felt so guilty for her father getting hurt all because she wanted his attention. "Oscar…?" his own hazel eyes left those of the princess, watching as the innkeeper opened her arms with a loving smile oh so like his mother's.

He couldn't stop the fresh tears that built up and began spilling from his eyes. Oscar let loose a set of choking sobs as he ran forward into the woman's awaiting embrace, the bitterness and anger he felt melting away as his Auntie held him.

The Dragon Sin only smiled at the display. "You can lie to yourself all you want, but there's no way you'll be able to fool your own heart." She mused aloud. Yang's smile faltered once she thought about her own words, and she stared out at nothing for a while until Blake noticed. The Faunus girl did not say a word on the matter, but made sure not to let her curiosity fade.

There was so much she still did not know, and would maybe never find out, about Yang Xiao Long.

* * *

"To Lady Yang of the Crow Bar!"

After the villagers had cleared out any trace of the Holy Knights from Vanya, they had all been invited by Yang herself back to the tavern for drinks on the house. Blake however, was having some issues of her own in the back room.

She had been given a purpose to perform during her time at the Crow Bar, at least until the opportunity arose where she could prove herself to Yang as an experienced fighter and not a useless princess. That purpose was acting as a waitress in the bar, and she had a few disagreements with her duties as such. One of which was wearing the revealing outfit Yang had asked her to wear.

"I won't do it; you can find someone else to be your tavern-tart!" Blake hissed, crossing her arms as if to block the older woman from staring too long at her chest.

Yang's eyebrows furrowed, her expression more serious than she probably was in reality. "I think I understand, it's your first time, you're nervous and unsure if you'll please me." The princess' patience was wearing thin enough to snap with a single look. "Could you just repeat that, but _slower_?"

That comment earned her a good whack on the head from the irritated Faunus, "What are you trying to do you _pervert?!"_ she snarled.

Yang rubbed the bump on her head and sighed, "Tell you what, just focus on the waitressing for now, don't worry about gathering any intel, and try to relax okay?"

Blake took a deep breath, "Fine, I'll show you relaxed…" she grumbled lowly, taking a tray of drinks in hand and set out into the crowd of drinking men. By the time the clock had reached midnight however, there was no shortage of food and booze on the floor, not so much in people's stomachs however. The princess was clearly not cut out for waitress-work, tripping over some thing or another and making a mess.

Yang only watched in amusement, Zwei licking his lips as he spotted the food that had graced the floor. "Oh yeah… there'll be no shortage of scraps for me tonight!" he barked happily, trotting out to lick up his dinner.

The princess sat at the bar with a furious blush coating her cheeks, humiliated by her inability to _serve drinks_ to men. Oscar, who sat beside her, laughed aloud. "You haven't done a day of hard work in your life, have you?" he snickered. Blake clenched her hands around the empty tray, frustrated beyond belief. How could it be that she had spent hours, days, _months_ training in combat and the art of ruling a kingdom with her father so fluidly and without effort, but _this_ was her downfall? "Yeah, it's obvious, you totally suck at this job!"

"Oscar! Don't you start mouthing off again!" his Auntie scolded. "Didn't you learn your lesson today? Children who get too big for their britches get taken out and left in the Forest of White Dreams." The woman explained, drawing out her voice to further scare the young boy.

"Oh no! Not there!"

Blake's bow twitched. "Forest of White Dreams?" she asked.

The boy looked petrified when she mentioned it; it must have been forbidden or cut off from Vanya for some reason. If so, why? "It's a place so scary even Holy Knights won't travel through it! Oh Auntie, I promise I'll be good and behave! Please, anything but that!" he begged, hugging the woman's skirts.

"And just why should I believe you?" Auntie teased.

"I promise! I swear!"

"Don't try putting one over on me, I've got my eye on you."

Blake had tuned them out, though she was happy Oscar finally felt like he had a place to call his own, her own thoughts kept pulling back to Yang and her valiant act of kindness towards this village and its people. Why would Holy Knights deem her so evil that every one of them in the kingdom was hunting her down every moment of every day for ten years, and this whole time, she was minding her own business in a tavern of all places? She wasn't even robbing people or anything like that, she was searching for what she had lost, her team. Blake wondered what the other Sins would be like, if they'd be compassionate and warm like Yang, or dark and suspicious like she always imagined them due to countless rumors around the palace.

She sighed, looking out the window at the clear night sky, drawn to the cool and quiet night just a small ways away from the tavern.

* * *

 ** _Approximately 7 miles northeast of Vanya Village, Fort Solgres_**

Within the walls of the sodden fort, the ruby-eyed serpent sat coiled tightly around a man's wrist, its beady red eyes watching him always, monitoring his every move as if it were to strike at any given moment.

The man with the crimson hair sat in his war counsel room, listening intently as his squire read off the report they had received from Vanya not an hour ago. "Only moments ago, we received a report from our soldiers in Vanya Village." The young man stammered, intimidated by the bone mask his master always insisted on wearing even among other Holy Knights. "They say that an unidentified young woman has pulled your sword from the ground, Sir Adam."

The Knight, Adam, as he was addressed, glanced down at the very sword he had planted in the village those days ago. The blade undamaged, and its supply of aura seemingly unaffected. His squire noticed his sheer boredom from the entire report, Adam knew exactly who had done this and how. The only question that remained, was what his next course of action would be.

"It must have been some random fluke that allowed her to…"

Adam cut him off, rising from his chair and taking his own sword in the hand restricted by the serpent. "So a fluke let her draw out a sword placed by a Holy Knight?" his voice echoed off the stone walls as they walked up the staircase that lead to the northeast tower of Solgres, a melancholy, almost aching tone lacing through his emotionless words.

The squire gulped, "N-no sir!"

The two of them reached the top of the tower, the bull Faunus paying no mind to the sentries at their posts as he strode forward towards the very edge of the balcony. There was no hesitation in his stride, no emotion revealed by his stony features, and whatever words his eyes would convey, was hidden well by the literal and metaphorical mask he wore. "Give me the range and heading to this village, and be _very_ exact."

"Y-yes sir! It's on a direct line with the fort's four-o-clock, distance: 7.3 miles."

Adam's gaze remained forward, the snake coiling tighter; he had no outside reaction to it, almost as if it wasn't even really there. "Would you mind terribly, if I used your spear?" the sentry positioned behind him gave a quick salute and handed over his serrated javelin without a word.

The masked Holy Knight grasped the spear firmly, continuing forward until he stood not another step to falling off the tower, but he had his eyes trained solely on the distant mountains before him. His target just on the other side. "Should be about this angle…" he muttered to no one, drawing up the spear to rest just above his shoulder. The metal body of the spear began to seep out a blood-like magical power, Adam's ability flowing inward and outward through the weapon like the pulsing of a heartbeat. It filled the room with a heaviness that resembled the feeling one gets when lightning is about to strike the earth.

With a mighty thrust of his arm, Adam threw the spear with as much power as he could draw out, launching it from the top of the fort and into the far distant target it was given like a crimson falling star.

* * *

Yang blinked, feeling… something… like a dense fog came over her out of nowhere before vanishing. It felt strange and… oddly familiar in a way. It was only Zwei's yammering in her ears that pulled her back from her thoughts, though the hairs on the back of her neck were still on edge. "Shouldn't you see what's up? We just had a princess run out of here!"

The blond barkeep finished cleaning out the empty mug in her hand before setting it back up on the shelf where it belonged, seeming to have ignored her dog. "Shouldn't you go talk to her?"

Yang again payed the corgi no mind, simply humming before answering. "Meh… gotta go pee."

Zwei huffed, "Man… the boss is a real slacker… guess I'm in charge of holding down the house now."

Outside, away from the noise emanating from the bar, Blake sat alone on the hill, staring up at the endless barrage of stars. She traced the constellations in her head, as her father had shown her each and every one of them. The princess felt downtrodden as she thought of King Ghira, he was the only true-blood family she had, even if she valued her adopted sisters with the love she would have given if they were her blood or even strangers on the street. She did not know where they were now… they had become separated when the Holy Knights came for them all.

For all Blake knew… they could… they could be…

Her yellow eyes blinked as her feline ears heard approaching footsteps. She lowered her guard only slightly once she saw that it was only Yang. "Oh… it's only you Yang." She greeted, hugging her knees close to her chest and going back to looking at the sky.

"Hey, don't worry about your shift, Zwei can pick up your tail end of it." She chuckled to herself.

However, when she saw that Blake did not notice, the blond woman placed a hand gently between where she assumed her cat-ears sat beneath her bow. The princess glanced up at her, yellow meeting lilac, and Blake's calculating gaze softened. "Sorry…" she began. "I suppose seeing Oscar and the villagers brought back memories of my father."

Yang looked out over the landscape, scanning every inch of what lay in front of her as if looking for something. "Oh?" she said, listening intently while absorbed in what she was doing.

"I just… hope he's okay."

"Around here maybe…?" her bow twitched, and she turned to scowl at the Dragon Sin, who was not even trying to listen to her anymore. She was too engulfed in… _whatever_ she was staring into the night sky for. Perhaps she was right though… Blake was the Princess of Liones, a trained warrior who had fought amongst Holy Knights, hardened herself into who she was today. Yet, here she was, moping around and feeling homesick. "A little more to the left?"

She had seen the suffering, seen the oppression the Holy Knights had caused her people, but she had been able to do nothing, instead choosing to run from her problems just like she _always_ did. With a princess like her… what chance did the people of the kingdom have?

The soft caresses of a hand on her ears drew her back from her bleak thoughts, not fighting off Yang's touch for the first time, the taller woman smiled warmly. "Don't go looking like you want to give up! After all, you found me, didn't you?"

Blake blinked.

"I mean, c _ome on_ , if you hadn't been trying everything you could to help your people and then stumbled into my place, they'd have no chance at all." She removed her hand from Blake's head, shoving them both into the pockets of her big brown leather coat. The princess was still quite surprised that one who was called the Sin of Wrath, could be so casually compassionate as if it was woven into her very nature. It seemed almost ludicrous to imagine her as anything other than a cheerful barmaid, but Blake had seen first hand the sheer power Yang possessed.

Even so, her warmth was always surprising. "Are you saying that… this is something I'm meant to do?"

"Exactly!" Her soft and chipper features furrowed into one of intense focus as her senses peaked and her head whipped upwards, her sharp eyes locked onto _something_ out there that was fast approaching. "And right now… there's something _I'm_ meant to do too."

Up in the shimmering night sky, a single star gleamed brighter, only it began to _bleed_ a vibrant red color, falling from the heavens with increasing speed. Blake's ears folded down as she heard the screech of metal against the wind, realizing the falling star was in fact a spear charged to its limit in a blood red aura.

It was headed straight for Yang.

Before Blake could call out to her comrade, the spear collided with the Dragon Sin, sending her flying backwards off the hill and down the side. "Yang!" the princess cried as the ball of pure energy created an enormous crater at the base of the cliff, dragging the blond woman through the village streets before skidding to a messy scratching halt in the square.

When the smoke and dust cleared away, Blake gasped as she saw Yang bent to one knee in the square, the spear clutched tightly in her hand, the sleeve of her coat burned away revealing her dragon mark. Her lilac eyes sprung open, pulling the spear back and twirling it to build the momentum back before thrusting her arm forward with all her might. The spear crackled and popped with her own yellow aura, her golden hair alive with flames as the weapon was thrown back to where it had come.

* * *

Adam blinked as he felt an overwhelming amount of his own aura flood his senses, he dropped the scrolls he held when he saw it. A crimson star shooting for Fort Solgres. He smirked once the spear entered the balcony opening with nothing but a whisper before the tower burst like a crack of thunder, splitting the entire fort in half, most of it crumbling to the ground while some still stood tall.

The soldiers scrambled, rummaging through the rubble for any surviving sentries. "Sir Adam! Are you alright?!" his squire called out.

The young soldier came to a spear lodged in what remained of Sir Adam's ornate chair, gasping as the dust cleared some to reveal the Holy Knight himself still seated there. The spear had struck where the Knight's head would have been, had Adam not moved a fraction of an inch at the last second, earning a rather ugly gash across his face, but leaving him alive nonetheless.

"It's just as I thought…" he mused, a smile on his face for the first time in ten years. "You _are_ alive aren't you? _Yang Xiao Long…"_

* * *

"Yang!"

Blake and Zwei sprinted into the village, following the trail of upturned cobblestone until they reached the center. Aside from a bloody scratch across her palm, Yang seemed completely unscathed by that spear. She flexed her hand to test her joints and knuckles before giving the princess a wink. "Probably the Holy Knight who left his sword in the ground… I think that's our que to leave here as soon as we can."

The two women looked around at the newly inflicted damage caused by whoever had thrown that spear. "What if Vanya is attacked again?" Zwei yipped.

"I think they'd be in more danger if we stayed."

Blake looked off into the distance, her enhanced Faunus vision allowing her to see farther into the dark than Yang or even Zwei probably could. She noticed what looked to be a wisp of fog emerging from a forest some miles away. "Wait…" she whispered. "Earlier tonight, Oscar said he would do anything to not be taken to a place called the Forest of White Dreams, he even said that Holy Knights won't even go near the place."

Zwei barked. "Sounds like the perfect place to hide out!"

Yang punched her bleeding fist into her palm, a smirk on her lips and a spark in her eye. "That settles it then! Only, we won't be _hiding out_ , we'll be doing exactly what we came for."

The black haired Faunus cocked her head, "What do you mean?" she asked. "You don't think…"

The Dragon Sin of Wrath practically beamed as she slung an arm over Blake's shoulders. "Yep! And I bet one of _us_ is living there!"

Blake's ears perked up as she took part in her companion's glee. If Yang truly believed one of her missing comrades was so close, that meant that Blake was one more step closer to ridding her once prosperous kingdom of the poisonous Holy Knights. She would free her father, and find where her sisters had been taken, and she would find every Sin in Britannia if it was the last thing she did.

"Okay!" Yang grasped Blake's hand as she pulled her atop Beo, the trio setting off on their next quest. "Let's find another Sin!"

* * *

A thick fog had settled among the gangly dead trees, one could not even see five feet beyond their own feet if they tried. The Forest of White Dreams was truly as scrolls described; a white sea of nothing but what once remained of the light of day.

If one were to look closer, however, they could walk a mile and come to a clearing in the trees. Soft sand covering the ground instead of the hard ash-ridden soil, and in the center of the clearing, a girl with short orange hair and a pink dress slept soundly.

The mark of the Serpent prominent on her upper thigh.

* * *

 **WHOA that chapter was LOOOOOOOONG! But as promised! Congrats to Matt22152 for winning the Guessing the Sins contest! Your prize... this shoutout and the immortal satisfaction of victory! And since I've just revealed my second Sin, I felt I could stretch out this chapter a little longer just so you guys could get that surprise at the end. Can you guess who it was? Anywho... back to the story I guess! Chao!**


	8. Chapter 7:The Sin of the Sleeping Forest

**Chapter 7: The Sin in the Sleeping Forest**

The grand room of the tower of the Holy Knight's capitol building was truly a remarkable sight for anyone seeing it for the first time. Adam recalled how he had been left on the doorstep of the Great Tower when he was just an infant, and Grand Master Ozpin took him in off the street, raising the Faunus boy as his own son. Adam so greatly wanted to be a Holy Knight like his father, one who fought nobly and valiantly for the kingdom and its people.

Those dreams had crumbled one day, as the young boy of ten gazed in agony upon the man whom he called father. The Grand Holy Knight Ozpin skewered through by dozens of arrows and spears and mounted atop the wall as if he were a prized trophy. To his son however, he was a bloody and mutilated corpse dripping onto the floor.

"Grand Master Ozpin! This is horrible…" a guard muttered.

"How could this have happened to the leader of the Holy Knights?"

The poor boy heard nothing but the numb ringing in his ears as he could do nothing but stare at the heap of carved flesh that used to be the man who called him his son.

 _"Father…"_

The guards gasped in horror, only now realizing the presence of the young lord among them. "Lord Adam!"

They each blocked his view of his father's body, attempting to shield him from the sight he already could never remove from his mind. "Please young master, you mustn't look!"

He clenched his jaw as his shock turned into a boiling, ugly pool of anger and pain, and he threw himself into them, kicking and throwing his fists as he attempted to break past them. "Who did this?!" he cried, his amber eyes filling with hot tears as he fought to look upon the man who raised him once more, no matter how gruesome the sight may be.

 _"Who killed my father?!"_

* * *

Even if it was ten years ago, Adam would never forget the blank and lifeless look in his father's eyes, it forever scarred his memory, driving him in a way that childish ambition never could. That day, he had vowed to find the ones who took Ozpin from him, robbed him of his only family, and left him as the broken shell of a once naïve and kind-hearted boy.

His stoic face examined the crater left in the square of Vanya where his sword was once planted, the very one he had collected from the village elder and now rested at its proper place at his hip. His armored squire rode up on his horse, breaking Adam's focus. "Sir, it seems she left the village and made her way southwest."

"Is that so." His words were devoid of any emotion, almost as if he were a hollow doll that had been painted with the features of Adam Taurus. "The Forest of White Dreams lies in that direction."

The squire seemed to have issues with that revelation. "Yes, but sir, that place is…"

Adam did not wait for his cowardly comrade to find his courage, giving his horse a kick and riding off in the direction of the southwest. He ignored his man's call, ignored the knights that began to ride behind him, even the snake tightening around his wrist became but a numb pinch. There was only one thing on his mind; the woman he had been looking for, ten long years of searching was finally about to pay off.

 _"Yang Xiao Long…"_

* * *

 _On her quest, Princess Blake Belladonna found Dragon Sin Yang Xiao Long, captain of the Seven Deadly Sins._

 _Searching for the others, they came to the village of Vanya, famous for its spectacular ale._

 _There, Yang saved the people, whose water supply had been cut off by the sword of a Holy Knight._

 _Then they set out once again, to look for the other Sins._

* * *

The Forest of White Dreams loomed over the landscape, its telltale fog woven through every dead or dying tree, silk threads of vapor ghosting around every corner like the remnants of lost souls. The trio trekked through the woods, attempting to find their way through the endless expanse of mist.

"Hey Yang, are you sure about this?" Zwei whimpered, clinging to Blake's leg and shaking. "We've been out here for hours, there's no sign of any animals much less any people!"

Blake shoved the dog away with her foot, never taking her eyes off her surroundings, ears perched straight forward on her head like the arrow of a compass. Unlike the cowardice of the corgi, the feline genes of the princess gave her a natural upturned nose in the direction of danger. She was not cocky or arrogant by any means, but she could not tremble just because an unfamiliar place such as the forest was a bit daunting.

Being a member of the first royal family to ever be of Faunus heritage gave her name a certain air, whether that air be awe-inspiring to the lower class Faunus who were treated poorly for their animal traits, or distaste from the nobles who would not hesitate to spit words of muck at her race. When Ghira came to power, it marked a new era; Faunus were no longer second-class citizens in Liones, and although the underlining discrimination they faced in the outward towns would most likely never completely disappear, the royal family earned their respect and wore it proudly.

Blake had always fought for her people, Faunus or otherwise, and would not lie down in the face of treachery to all her father had built. Now here she was, still alive and still fighting, searching for ghosts of remnants of the most powerful mercenaries in Britannia.

"Yang," she asked the Dragon Sin, who walked further behind the group, skittering closer to the princess than what was probably appropriate. "Do you believe we'll be able to find one of the Seven Deadly Sins here?"

The blond woman shrugged and curled a lock of her almost supernaturally shiny hair around her finger, "Probably."

Zwei huffed at her nonchalant disposition. "You mean we came here without _any_ solid evidence?!" the little dog scratched behind his ears, feeling an unsettling itch there ever since they set foot in this forest. "I heard there's a terrifying monster that lurks around here, watching, and _waiting…"_

Blake yowled. _"Nya!"_

"What is it?!" Zwei squeaked and jumped up, setting his small body in a position to pounce on anything at any time.

The corgi's eye twitched when he saw the princess, not being devoured by a ferocious monster, but her feline ears being furiously groped and rubbed by Yang's meticulous fingers. The black-haired girl's face was painted a burning scarlet as her cheeks puffed out in annoyance, not to mention embarrassment as the blond woman used the pads of her thumbs to press into the base of her ears and start a rumbling purr to surface from deep in her belly. "Relax…" the older woman smirked. "It's just me."

Swallowing her vibrating diaphragm, Blake shoved her companion away, folding her ears flat against her head and giving her a harsh glare. "You're such a _creep!"_ she hissed.

Yang only winked, "Putting that aside for just a minute," Zwei grumbled, at his whit's end with his boss's perverse attitude towards the princess of the kingdom. He wondered what the king would say if he ever heard about this. "I might have a little evidence."

Two pairs of ears perked up.

"Traveling through the Forest of White Dreams on horseback is more difficult than you think; it's so hard to get your bearings that even experienced travelers go around it."

Blake blinked, looking around and observing all the fog that cloaked the three of them. "This would be the perfect place for someone to hide." She voiced. A breeze tickled her ears, sending a shudder through her as a startling realizing hit her that something was missing. She covered her ears with her hands, finding the lack of the satin fabric she grimaced. Where was it? Did she forget to put it on this morning? No, she never forgets to wear it, and she knew she had it securely tied on her head when they set out some hours ago. That only left…

Yang turned back, wearing her mischievous grin and sending another wink in Blake's direction. The princess nearly lunged for the Dragon Sin, her eye twitched as she saw her black ribbon dangling from between the blond woman's fingers. She gave it a little bounce, the strip of fabric fluttering in the breeze before Yang pocketed it and continued onward.

"Now come on slowpokes! Pick up the pace would you?!" Zwei barked, a little ways ahead of the pair.

The lilac-eyed mercenary crossed her arms behind her head. "Hey, hold your woofs, not a lot of fun traveling with a nervous pupper…" Yang blinked. "Whoa…"

Zwei snorted and turned around, only for a dozen other corgis who were identical to him to do the same. _"Who are you calling a nervous pupper?!"_ they all snapped. One of the Zwei's, hopefully the original, yelped and whipped his head back and forth between his other selves. "Whoa! It's a litter, and they're all me!"

The litter fell into a sea of barks, yips, and whines as they bickered among themselves regarding the identity of the original Zwei. Blake arched an eyebrow, more confused than fearful. " _This_ is the creature of the forest?" she asked, taking a step back from the dozen dogs before her.

Yang shuddered, "I for one find it _terrifying_." It was hard enough dealing with one talking dog, the last thing she wanted to do was take them _all_ in, creature or otherwise. The herd all turned to Yang, bounding towards her and one by one attempting to convince her that one or the other was the _real Zwei._ The blond hummed, scratching her chin in thought. Honestly there was no way to tell who was physically the one true Zwei, so maybe if something were to… say… _damage_ the physical body, whatever reaction that would ensue would determine which talking dog was the one truly who complained about everything and ate leftovers off Yang's floor.

Without a word, Yang lunged forward with her fists raised, punching every Zwei in sight in their fluffy bellies. She made sure to hold back her magical powers, so as not to hurt them beyond bruising, but that didn't stop them all from howling and dropping like flies onto the ground. Each one twitching and or weeping softly. "She's not nice at all…" one of them whimpered.

"Zwei!" Blake called, denying every silent accusation imaginable that she worried for the small canine, but worrying for his wellbeing nonetheless.

Almost as if forgetting their pain altogether, the Zwei's all perked up and bolted towards the princess, bursting into tears and hiding behind her legs. "Blake help!" they cried in unison, "Please! Even my mom never hit me like that!"

Blake blinked in confusion, not exactly knowing what to do in this situation. She had never dealt with any magical creatures before, let alone ones that could shape-shift. "Hey… what are you…" she started, opting to kick them all away from her if she had to, but instead of seeing the multiple whining corgis at her feet, all she saw was a shadow rising from the ground. It dusted off its arms as it looked directly at her, sending an unsettling shiver through her as Blake reached for the sword on her back.

"Who's there?" she demanded them. Zwei, now no longer victim to the trickery of the creature of the forest, barked from his place behind Blake's legs.

"I'm so confused…" he simpered. Yang hummed again, looking around at all the shadowy figures emerging from behind tress or even out of thin air; whenever the blond woman blinked another shadow would appear and flock around Blake like she was a beacon. The ebony-haired princess gripped the handle of her sword, pulling it from its sheath and revealing the dark and curved blade of her specially forged weapon, Gambol Shroud.

The figures were seemingly undeterred by the sight of her sword, the fog clearing only slightly before Blake's eyes as the figures in front of her revealed to be… her?

"They're… all me." She gasped, even more on edge as she gazed at the physical copies of herself.

The Blakes' faces all morphed from emotionless to coy and mischievous, turning to Yang and placing their hands in front of them, wrists bent to give the impression of cat's paws. " _Hello Lady Yang!_ " they all purred.

Yang blinked twice, her own features displaying her giddiness at all the feline Faunus beauties laid out for her. They all began to mewl in tandem about being the real Blake similarly to how the multiple Zwei's argued, and Yang could not contain her slightly perverted joy. "My, my, what a clutch of kitty-cats I have here!"

Zwei head butted her leg, "This is _not_ the time boss!"

 _"Leave this place…"_

The duo froze at the unfamiliar voice that whispered in their ears. Yang felt the fog almost thicken with the scratching echo that bounced off the dead trees, giving her no clue as to where the voice came from.

 _"Leave… get out of this forest, human…"_

As if on command, the cluster of Blakes started towards the older blond, grasping onto jutting branches and snapping them in their palms, Zwei flinching each time a branch broke off and a Blake meowed Yang's name. "Hm… I really can't tell one from the other." She wondered aloud.

 _"Lady Yang!"_

They all made a grab for her, and despite loving the idea of this many black-haired princess's wrapping their arms around her and nuzzling their sweet cat-like faces into every corner of her body, Yang had to find the real Blake, so rather than indulge in her fantasies, she evaded their grasp, kicking up dust as she did so. The Blakes all blinked, purring when their Lady reappeared on top of a boulder placed just out of their reach.

"Oh how ever can I tell which one of you is the _real_ one?" the blond chirped, thoroughly enjoying how each cat-girl defended her identity as the one true Blake, promising all sorts of things that fueled Yang's inappropriate imagination.

She grinned as they all gazed up at her with admiration and wonder, like she was truly a gift from above. "Great! Starting now, I want you all to do exactly what I tell you to!" the clutch meowed in agreement, all too eager to serve and please Yang in any way she wanted. "What do we say?" she teased.

" _Nya!"_ they replied.

Yang clapped her hands and rubbed her palms together. "Okay, right hand up in the air, left one on your cheek!" they all obeyed without question, some of them even having the initiative to look somewhat seductive while doing so. "Now, call out my name, and be naughty…"

 _"Lady Yang, hi…"_ they all sighed bashfully.

Yang smirked. "Now… scratch your kitty ears."

As commanded, they all began to fondle, squeeze, and scratch at their respective Faunus ears. Purring, mewling, and even moaning at the pleasurable feelings they were giving themselves. "This is amazing…" the blond drooled.

Zwei jumped into her lap, momentarily blocking her view of the R-rated scene happening in front of her. "Could you just find the real one already?!"

 _"Get out…"_ the distant voice scratched again. _"Leave now!"_

 _"You will never make it out of this forest!"_

The Dragon Sin stared down at the purring flock of Blakes, thinking deeply on what could actually be causing the illusion, it would have to be something indigenous to this forest, something that could shape-shift, and possibly something connected to nature. An imp of some kind? Maybe a species of fairy that was up to no good? Even the magic of a Holy Knight could be capable of this kind of trickery, but only _one_ thing did it in such a teasing fashion.

"I got it!" Yang proclaimed proudly. "Okay, one last thing, tie your bow around your wrists!"

The clutch all did as asked, using their teeth to tie themselves up in the length of the silk bow and giggling with scarlet cheeks as they waited for their Lady's next command. All save for one particular Blake hidden in the back, crossing her arms and gritting her teeth furiously.

"Absolutely not!" her ears flattened, revealing no ribbon on her person as Yang had taken the real Blake's bow from her earlier. Quick as lightning, Yang brought up her fists and punched every bound princess hard in the gut, not having to worry about which was her own Blake any longer.

Every false Blake proceeded to pop like a punctured balloon, puffs of smoke cloaking them until small impish creatures emerged from the place of the Blakes and bounced away into the forest. "Look at that!" Zwei woofed. "They were just Hide-and-Seeks! Prankster imps!"

"We thought _they_ were the monster of the forest?" Yang chortled, slightly disappointed at losing her naughty kittens, but glad to have the original back anyway.

"After them!" the princess called, her sword gripped tight in her hand as she took off, giving chase to the imps as they made their way deeper into the woods. Zwei yelped and bounded after her, leaving Yang to play with Blake's stolen bow in her hands.

She smirked and pocketed it. "I'll just give it back later."

The trio was becoming more and more blind with every tree they passed, the fog becoming thicker as well, so they made sure to remain right on the tail of the retreating creatures, "We need to keep a sharp eye on them, they're probably heading towards something in that direction!" Blake was not losing them, the trio came to this forest seeking one of the Seven Deadly Sins, and the princess was going to damn well find them.

Yang kept up with her feline companion, watching as the fire in her yellow eyes grew the more they chased the imps. Unbeknownst to her, she had begun to smile, not with humor or mischief but with a warmth she had not given to someone in many years. Too bad its receiver was too absorbed in a distorted figure that was emerging from the mist the closer they became. The blond woman narrowed her eyes at the approaching image, almost gaping open mouthed as their distinct features became more clear.

"Hey, look!"

Blake's eyes widened. "It's a girl!"

She ran faster, forgetting about the Seven Deadly Sins for a moment and focusing on the grotesque creatures that she feared were planning to attack the defenseless civilian. The princess readied her blade as she caught up with the imps, fully prepared to step between them as the young girl they were currently swarming. What was strange however was that although her pink dress was in tatters and her short orange hair appeared dirty, the young girl wore heavyset white armor on her chest, shoulders, and legs. Her bare feet were calloused and rough, but her armor was in peak condition, she looked like a warrior if Blake ever saw one.

 _"Lady Nora!"_ the imps cried, shaking the sleeping girl's shoulders. _"Lady Nora!"_

"Whoa…" Zwei gaped, sniffing at her armor from a safe distance. "I don't think she needs any rescuing…"


	9. Chapter 8: A Rather Strange Reunion

**Chapter 8: A Rather Strange Reunion**

It seemed so hard to believe now that she thought about it. Ten years, it had been ten years since she last saw her friends, her uncle, her _team_ , and she had started to make peace with the fact that they might not see each other for many years to come or even forever. Fate always seemed to prove her wrong, as her lilac eyes trained solely on the serpent tattooed on the upper thigh of the sleeping girl before her.

 _"Lady Nora!"_ the trickster imps cried, desperately trying to wake her. _"We accidently let some Holy Knight trespassers in!"_

Yang might've thought to defend herself, since she and her royal and canine companions were respectively nowhere near Holy Knights, but all she could do was watch in silence for what this Lady Nora would do when she woke. _"Lady Nora?"_

The imps all squeaked in fear as a pair of electric sea-green eyes burst open, the air around them crackling and popping with static energy, similar to the way the area explodes when lightning strikes the earth. Blake and Zwei took steps backwards, folding their ears back as to protect them from the energy waves pulsating from where the armored girl rose from her slumber, a fierce glare on her heart-shaped face.

"Some Holy Knights got in, huh?" she growled, cracking her knuckles, small sparks of electricity bouncing between her fingers as she did so. The supposed Lady Nora strode forward and dug her hands into the surface of a nearby boulder, pulling it apart and breaking it clean in two as if it was nothing to her.

Zwei covered his ears with his paws, "Whoa, she's strong…" he whimpered.

Blake grasped her sword, Gambol Shroud, in her hands, not taking aim at the powerful girl but not kneeling in submission either. Her strength and the gleaming opalescent shine of her armor reminded the princess of stories her father had told her. Stories of gods, who had once ruled the land with iron fists, before intertwining themselves with humans and fading away, leaving only a handful of half-human children as their legacy.

 _She couldn't be… could she? Could she be one of the demigods of old?_

"We're not Holy Knights!" she pleaded, "We've only come to…"

Before Blake could blink, the girl in the pink dress thrust her arms out, spider webs of lightning emerging from her palms and wrapping themselves around Yang like ropes. They lifted her up until she hung upside-down above the opposing trio. "You're in trouble Holy Knight." The girl spat, constricting her lightning around Yang tighter, the blond woman wearing a face of indifference and even boredom through it all.

Zwei yelped and called loudly to the armored female, his voice laced with the terror he felt. "Wait! You're not going to kill her, are you?!"

Blake raised her sword to the girl now, having confirmed her as an enemy and not an ally. "Let Yang go, now!"

Turquoise eyes blinked, turning to look up at the head of blond hair more closely. "Yang…?" she voiced, a sense of familiarity at that name plucking the strings at the back of her memory. She lowered her captive so she could look her dead in the eyes, her own shining green ones meeting a pair that swam in that lilac color identical to another Yang she had known.

"Yo Nora, what's it been, like, ten years?"

The redhead now known as Nora, never broke eye contact with her prey, tightening her electrified ropes more with every second she focused on Yang. The blond had to admit, the Nora she knew was never this cold and ruthless, hell, she wasn't even a little bit frigid. The very same comrade she had fought beside was cheerful, bubbly, and loved more than anything to call Yang by one name and one name only.

 _"Captain!"_

There it was.

Nora released her blond leader from her lightning, plopping her right into the ginger's arms, she squeezed and hugged Yang until her face was surely imprinted into her breastplate, Nora giggling happily all the while. "Captain! Captain! Captain! I've missed you so much!"

While the armor-clad girl rambled on excitedly, Blake's eyebrow twitched in absolute bafflement. She had gone from annoyed and detached to sugary sweet in less than a fraction of a second, and was now smothering Yang in her chest and squealing about her _Captain._ "Captain?" she muttered under her breath.

Zwei sniffed the air, his ears perking up as he gasped in realization. "Hang on, the chick in the pink dress is one of the Seven Deadly Sins?!" he yipped. " _Nora Valkyrie, the Serpent Sin of Envy?!_ "

Nora's eyes sparkled with glee when she turned to look down at Zwei, "Captain, you've thought of everything, haven't you? You remembered how much I _love_ fluffy puppies!"

The corgi shivered under her intense gaze, attempting to make a break for it, but failing when the Sin of Envy dropped Yang and scooped the talking dog up into her toned arms. Zwei wiggled and struggled fruitlessly as she squeezed and hugged his small body, squealing and giggling like a child. "No! Don't squeeze me so hard lady!" he whined, the ginger-haired girl ignoring him and clinging to the canine as if he were a plush toy.

"But how can I wove you without hugging you silly!" she explained, using _wove_ instead of love in that oh so obnoxious voice one used when talking to babies, and unfortunately for Zwei, small and cute animals. Nora peppered his muzzle with kisses and nuzzles.

He barked, "That's not what I meant! Now let me down! I can feel my ruff roasting!" the funny thing about Nora was, when she was happy, her magical powers over electricity tended to… spark? Little beads of her magic were zapping Zwei all over, thoroughly making the corgi try harder to break free of her grasp.

Yang snickered at the picture of her bubbly teammate suffocating Zwei with her _wove._ "Well isn't that the sweetest thing in the world?"

"Don't act like you can't hear me boss! _Get this girl away from me already would you?!_ "

* * *

After about a half hour of Nora smothering Zwei in her affections, the corgi had fallen victim to her most effective move. The dreaded belly scratches. She had rubbed and tickled his tummy until he was putty in her hands, shaking his leg and warbling uncontrollably as the pleasure took over and his sass was no more. Yang however, needed her scraps-dog, so Nora reluctantly let the canine free.

The ginger sighed, "By the way, who's this girl?" she asked, gesturing to Blake once Zwei had regained consciousness.

The princess' ears perked. She placed her fist over her heart and bowed to the Serpent Sin, warrior to warrior, "It's an honor to meet you Lady Nora, my name is Blake Belladonna, and I've asked Lady Yang to allow me to accompany her."

While Blake was introducing herself, Nora was examining her from head to toe, taking in her tiny shorts and tight-fitting blouse, as well as her long glossy black hair and adorable Faunus ears. "So it's just the two of you then?" she asked, throwing Yang a sideways look despite her energetic smile.

"Plus the talking dog." The blond added.

"Oh, is that so?"

"Yep! Plus we…"

Yang was not given the chance to finish, as Nora wrapped her once more in lightning before throwing her into the ground with all her might, the earth rumbling from the force of the blow. _"I knew it!"_ she screeched. The older woman in question rose from the dirt, dusting off her leather coat with no apparent outside injuries, only a slightly confused quirk of her eyebrow.

"Okay?"

Blake had grabbed Zwei and covered them both with her sword, in case debris were to hit them, she was quick to drop him however and try to check over Yang. "Are you alright?" she asked, not knowing the full extent of the armored girl's power. Nora let out a squeal loud enough to shake both Blake _and_ Zwei's ears as she practically tackled the Faunus into her arms.

It seemed Blake would be the latest target for the bubbly girl's hugs. "After all this time of the captain being so alone she's finally found herself a beautiful woman!" she beamed, ignoring Blake's fierce blush of embarrassment, at her accusation of how intimate her relationship with Yang was, and the fact that she was being shoved into Nora's painfully exposed cleavage against her will. "You've made my heart so big it's going to burst into a million pieces! You have to, have to, _have to_ tell me how this happened!"

Yang scratched the back of her head, "Honestly… there's not really any…"

Nora would not hear of it, instead opting to use her inhuman strength to lift up a boulder three times her size and use it to pummel the blond woman into the dirt. Blake and Zwei both blinked, nowhere near expecting a turn of mood so extreme. "No excuses! You better not be treating her badly! You perverted, philandering little…"

"Think she's okay?" the cat-girl murmured to the corgi, completely and utterly lost amongst the chaos thrust upon the trio, now quartet.

He could not do much but hide behind the safety of the Faunus princess, "This girl's nuts…" he whimpered.

Nora thrust her arms upwards to the sky, storm clouds forming from the fog and crackling with pure energy as she brought it down upon her blond leader. "You're a big jerk! You hear me?!" the bolt of lightning struck Yang like a slap to the face, exploding all around the forest clearing and breaking down many trees in its wake. Once everything calmed down however, the woman was still standing, and brushed the scorch marks off her pants.

She sighed and began their conversation anew, "So, to finally put an end to all the corruption, and to stop the Holy Knights from rampaging… Blake is trying to get the Seven Deadly Sins back together."

The ginger felt drained and a little guilty after hearing the full explanation of the captain and the Faunus' relationship, sad to say it was professional at best. "I didn't know about that… guess I'm the one who always jumps to conclusions aren't I… sorry." Her bottom lip quivered slightly as her turquoise eyes seemed to enlarge with her apologetic frown. "And I'm sorry for snuggling you too hard Puppy,"

A vein in Zwei's forehead bulged. "You think that makes it alright?! You almost made my eyes pop and my insides into mush!" he barked, feeling pretty peeved until Nora's soft eyes turned down into a scowl, making the corgi shiver and reconsider his next words carefully. "But… I guess if our belly rubs are that good, then I guess I'll get over it…"

The armored Sin of Envy fixed her gaze on Blake next, once again eyeing her from the ground up and trying to determine if she was romantically interested in Yang or not, even a twitch of her ears in the blond's direction would be enough. Nora _craved_ romance anywhere she could find it, she had even attempted to set one of her teammates up with someone or another on more than one occasion, which usually ended up in a scolding at best and an intense spar at worst. The princess blinked under Nora's staring, "Are you _sure_ you don't have that kind of relationship with the Captain?"

Yang's eyebrow twitched, "Nora, you better not be matchmaking again…" she warned, having had to speak with her energetic comrade about it too many times to count.

"Who… _me?_ " she replied, poking her cheek and being the epitome of innocence.

Flipping her bountiful golden locks over her shoulder, Yang slung an arm across Nora's shoulders. "Anyway, I'm just going to do what I can to help Blakey gather the Seven Deadly Sins, cause I want to find them too."

"Blakey?" the princess hissed, not in the least bit amused by the new nickname. She still had not entirely forgotten about her stolen bow, which Yang still had somewhere on her person, and Blake was not about to search her for it and have her crack another innuendo that would surely make their newest companion ripe with assumption about their relationship, which was strictly business to begin with. Blake did not come on this journey to have the leader of the Seven Deadly Sins take her for some sort of easy woman; she was the princess of the realm and a formidable warrior, she was not anyone's _Blakey._

Nora giggled, cracking her knuckles, "Well, if you're sure that's the case, then I'll come along with you guys!" she banged her fist against her breastplate, the clang echoing through the forest. "You'll have the help of the Serpent Sin of Envy, the child of Thor, Nora Valkyrie!"

"Really? That's great!" Yang clapped her on the shoulder, and Blake connected her fist to her heart once more as a show of gratitude and respect, a traditional gesture in the royal family.

"Many thanks Lady Nora."

 _"But let's get one thing straight!"_ she quickly added, making the Faunus girl tense slightly. "Don't think I'm going to do this without trying to get you and the Captain together Miss Blakey!" she chortled in delight before poking Blake lightly on the nose. "Boop!"

The princess blinked, her upper lip twitching slightly as she tried her hardest not to glare and seem rude to a demigod such as the Sin of Envy. _"Oh thank goodness!"_ the scratching voice sighed with relief, turning the heads of the quartet as they remembered the presence of the Trickster Imps of the forest, who had hidden Nora among them for ten years. _"Finally we can live in peace again! For years she's been chasing us around trying to play games, saying she'd give us hugs and cuddles in exchange for shelter it's been simply awful!"_ the imps burst into laughter, scattering and scurrying off into the fog without another word.

Zwei sniffed, "They're free now… so beautiful…"

Beneath their feet, a snake with a brown body and green ridges down its spine hissed loudly, the sound reverberating off the fog and echoing in the quartet's ears, making them fall silent as the scarlet-eyed creature slithered past. The sound of it had left them feeling cold, as if something, be it the snake or something hidden in the mist, was watching them.

Blake's hand drifted to the hilt of her sheathed sword, "What was that…"

"This is strange…" Nora muttered, "I've been here for years, and I was sure all the animals had moved on."

Zwei felt the hairs on his scruff stand up, he sniffed the air and nearly sneezed from the foul stench that he inhaled. "Smells like something died…" he sniffed once more, turning his head skyward only to find a most unnatural and unsettling sight. "Wait, look at that!"

The group whipped their heads up, eyes widening as they watched the clouds above all converge together to cover the sun, the mass above them turning an ugly crimson as it bled wit magical power. Before they could blink, a crash of what sounded like thunder shook the forest itself, the bleeding sky forming into chains that glowed an angry red, coiling around every one of them and tightening like a vice until they could not move an inch.

Yang wiggled slightly, the chains around her not budging. "What's up with this?" she asked no one in particular.

"Captain?" Nora attempted to break free, only to find herself completely immobile from the magical binds.

"I can't… move…" Blake grunted, her arms bent behind her back at an awkward angle. She could not reach her sword, not that she really believed it to be any good against an aura this powerful. Then, a sound so soft that only her feline ears could have possibly heard it, brushed against her hearing. The sound of armored footsteps stomping through the forest and drawing ever closer to the trapped group like a predator stalking its prey.

A figure emerged from the fog, a man, wearing a mask over his eyes that resembled the bone fragments of some kind of demon. His hair was as vibrant red as the chains he'd bound his targets in, and Blake could not help but stare at the pair of blackened horns atop his head.

"And… you are?" Yang questioned, her posture uncaring but her eyes scanning every movement the mysterious man made.

The man smirked, his hand firmly grasping the curved blade at his belt. "It would seem we meet at last… you deadly Sins…"

The snake from before curled upon his wrist, hissing and disappearing beneath his sleeve.

* * *

 **Hey guys! I'm so happy to see you all loving this story and avidly supporting it, but i'm sad to say I might not be updating for a week or so do to where I live and the approach of Hurricane Irma, my power might go out meaning my internet will as well meaning no updates for at least a week. But fear not! I will get the next chapter out as soon as I can! I love you all! Chao for now!**


	10. Chapter 9: Not so Little Knight Anymore

**Chapter 9: Not so Little a Knight Anymore**

Blake could not move, not even with all her strength, her heart pounded in her chest as the masked Holy Knight made his way closer and closer to them. He slowly pulled his crimson bladed sword from its sheath, the abnormal metal pulsing with hate-filled energy and giving off a pungent odor of rotting flesh.

Yang and Nora were also deemed immobile, as the knight's chains of burning red had them completely trapped in his aim. "This power…" the Sin of Envy observed.

The Sin of Wrath was quick to confirm what her companions already knew. "No doubt about it… you're a Holy Knight, aren't you."

The Faunus princess could not bring herself to break the gaze of the Holy Knight, his hidden eyes boring into her very core, as her own yellow eyes were locked on the familiar horns curving on his head. She had not seen this man in a very long time, even going as far as to assume his death when the corruption took over the capitol. Yet here he was, right before her.

"Adam…" she whispered. "Adam is that you?" the crimson-haired man, now known to the Sins as Adam, gave away no emotion, and simply stared at Blake without a single movement. He displayed no reaction to her call. "What are you up to… Why are you doing this?!"

She struggled against his chains with no results, and Yang could not help but notice the utter heartbreak in her voice. "Do you… know this guy?" she asked.

Blake nodded, her eyes burning with tears she refused to let fall. "He was my father's attendant, ever since I could remember." She explained, not breaking eye contact with Adam. "As an aid to the king, and son of the Holy Knight's Grand Master, he was always at the palace… I grew up with him."

She could always recall how he had climbed trees with her in the garden, him keeping her from climbing too high and her helping him balance on branches. They played together more times than Blake could count. He had taught her basic swordplay and trained with her in the courtyard whenever she asked. Adam had been her best friend, and she had thought of him often on her journey for the Seven Deadly Sins, wondering and praying that he was alright and still fighting for her father.

However, now it seemed she had been horribly wrong to think that.

Yang was running through her own memories, trying to place where it was she had heard the name Adam. She _knew_ she had heard it before, but where? "Son of the Grand Master, huh?" looking at his tall and lean build, as well as his telltale hair and Faunus horns, she finally remembered. "Hey! Wait a minute, are you Little Addy?"

Blake blinked, not expecting the Dragon Sin to address the Holy Knight so informally, especially not to know him so openly well. "You know him too?!" she gasped.

"Sure! I even taught him how to fight whenever I was at the royal palace!" seemingly ignoring the princess' flabbergasted stare, Yang looked Adam up and down, a bit taken aback by how serious and gloomy he looked. The little boy she had given boxing lessons too had always been so happy and eager to learn whatever she could teach. But this man… this man was a stranger. "Wow, you hit a growth spurt, then again it _has_ been ten years since I last saw you."

Adam's jaw clenched, but he stilled himself before speaking, showing no emotion. "If you have the time to prattle on like this, perhaps you should spend it trying to escape your chains."

He felt his wrist pinch and tighten as a low hiss vibrated in his mind, almost burning as it numbed his brain and drowned out his thoughts. His grip on his sword tightened until his fist was white beneath his leather gloves, the deceptively strong vermin coiled around his wrist slithering up his arm. He often feared it would wrap around his neck one day while he slept, suffocating him completely.

"Hey, this power feels familiar…" Zwei moaned, tightly packaged in the metal lengths of pure energy.

Yang smirked slightly, more humorous and jovial than Adam's own disgusted frown. "I know what you mean, when a certain _someone_ blocked off Vanya's water supply and tried to blow the village away… that was you, wasn't it?"

Blake listened and stared at the Sin of Wrath in horror, not believing what her words were telling her. Adam had strayed from his path, that much she knew, but she couldn't ever fathom him attacking innocent people for a reason as petty as a boy standing up for what he believed in. Was he not the very same as Oscar once? Believing deep down that the world was good and he could help make it better by becoming a Holy Knight like his father. Where was that Adam? The Adam she grew up with.

"No… that _can't be!"_ she denied, fixing Yang with a cold glare before turning to her childhood friend, and having the air stolen from her lungs.

Beneath his mask, she belt his burning yet icy gaze fixated on her as he gripped the handle of his sword, his gloved hand radiating with a fowl scented power. Iron and rot, the scent of death. "Adam…" she whimpered, unable to come to terms with the truth as it became laid out before her very eyes.

Out of her line of vision, Nora began to struggle and pull at the chains that held her. "These can't hold me…" she vowed, her effort visible as she attempted to break free of her bonds.

Adam tsked, almost as if he was disappointed. "That's useless."

Ignoring him, the redheaded demigod continued to struggle, not giving up without a fight. Yang looked over her shoulder at her comrade, "Nora, just save it, don't bother." She advised, seeing Adam's pure hatred and contempt poured into every knot and bolt of his chains. Raw emotion such as this combined with such strong magical aura, was not to be taken lightly.

"Captain…" she moaned, the chains pulling tighter around her body the more she fought them.

Yang silenced her with a look, her lilac eyes boring into Nora's turquoise ones as the ginger-haired sin conveyed her leader's orders. She ceased her struggles begrudgingly, trusting her Captain and the decisions she made for the good of the team. The blond felt a shiver akin to a blood droplet cascading down her spine as Adam pressed the blade of his sword into the juncture between her neck and her shoulder, the crimson metal practically vibrating with its user's power.

"Do you know why the Holy Knights are after the heads of the Seven Deadly Sins?" he asked, a sharpness added to his icy tone that Yang picked up on. When he referred to wanting the Sins destroyed, his grip on his sword tightened, and a flicker of rage wisped behind his mask.

Yang shrugged, ignoring the feeling of razor sharp metal brushing against her skin. "Not really."

Adam's eyebrows furrowed. "Half of them are seeking revenge and total eradication of the rebel order that plotted to overthrow the kingdom." He explained, and though they were hidden, Yang could feel his eyes burning brands into her back. "The other half want to do glorious battle, and vanquish the legendary warriors to prove their own strength."

Her eyes met a wall of solid bone painted in old blood, but her gaze was curious and somewhat innocent all the same. "And… which half are you in?"

The horned Holy Knight felt the barrier preventing him from looking his adversary in the eye burned against his skin, enough to make a normal man cry out in pain if he had not grown so used to it. The feeling of the fragment of bone on his face like a continuous branding, only a dull sting now. He clenched his jaw, feeling his hatred bubble like scalding oil.

"Both of them." He whispered to her, "No… I want more."

"Is that so?" Yang's disposition of casual chatter between old friends did not change as she held the young Knight in eye contact. It was as if she was staring right past his mask and into the amber eyes she had not seen in ten years. Eyes that once held such determination as he practiced day after day in order to become the best swordsman in Leones.

Adam hissed as the memory of his father's mutilated corpse sprung into his mind. " _Yes."_

The image was clear and undisturbed, even after so long, the blood splattered on the floors and walls, the spears lodged into the stonework, and through all of it, the sight of the great Grand Master Holy Knight, the man who had raised him, trained him, fed him, called him his son. He was no more than a butchered piece of flesh in that room.

"To avenge the death of my _father_ , Ozpin, Holy Knight's Grand Master." He would always remember the way his happiness and innocence simply disappeared that day, and in the days that followed the boy neither slept nor ate. His thoughts trained on the names called when the Holy Knight's new Grand Masters announced the identities of the traitorous monsters responsible for his father's murder.

 _The Seven Deadly Sins._

"To show that I am even greater than he, the most powerful Holy Knight ever known" The Seven Deadly Sins would pay for Ozpin's death; Adam swore to the heavens this vow every sleepless night he spent in the empty house he used to call his home. Without his father, without Ozpin, the once warm household was cold and dark. Calloused hands that used to ruffle his hair and pick up his sword when it became too heavy for a young boy to carry, were still and pale, stained in his own blood. A face that had seen so much war, death, and violence, would never smile kindly down at him with the love and pride only a father could possess, ever again.

It broke him that day, and Adam Taurus was no longer a boy.

"Killing _you_ … will prove that." He spat, pressing his blade harder into Yang's flesh, unsatisfied that the skin did not break under the pressure.

Lilac eyes blinked, "So you're under the impression… that _I'm_ the one who murdered your father?"

"Are you saying you're _not?_ " the pure malice in his voice was enough to make her wince.

Truth be told, her memory around Ozpin's demise was fuzzy and undefined due to years of putting her days as a Knight of King Ghira's inner circle to the back of her mind in order to avoid suspicion. She had to abandon any outward trace of her past, as she searched for her missing comrades. However, someone _had_ murdered Ozpin, a good and caring man who did not deserve such a fate. When she had discovered what had happened, the first thing that came to mind was Adam.

Oz had told her how he had taken the weak babe from his doorstep one night, other men of the realm content to leave the infant to an orphanage or even in the woods so the gods could decide his fate. Oz was never that type of man. He cared and saw every member of the Holy Knights as his family, taking any and every soul who wished to serve the kingdom under his wing.

Whomever was responsible for his murder was _not_ a valiant soul, and Yang honestly did not know if she was that soul or not.

It terrified her, if she was to be honest.

"I have no idea." she answered him truthfully, "The thing is, I don't actually remember much from back then."

Nora stared at her leader, taken aback by this revelation. "Captain…" Yang was not one who forgot things easily, whether it be a barely visible scuff on her weapon or something of the like, she would be laser-focused in on any task. The murder of the Grand Master Holy Knight was not something she could see the Captain just… forgetting.

"Yang…" Blake whispered, listening intently as her childhood friend and the Dragon Sin conversed.

She had heard every rumor telling of the extent of Yang Xiao Long's power, but she had been foolish to not consider the blond woman's ability to kill a man so easily. It was fully _possible_ for Yang to survive, even thrive in a battle against Grand Master Ozpin, but for her to actually _murder_ him in cold blood, was a treachery the Sin seemed repulsed at doing.

Then again, she was named the Sin of _Wrath_ , most likely for good reason. Blake had to remember that.

Yang stared off at a black bird grooming its feather in a distant tree, the image reminding her of the blackened gauntlets sealed around her wrists. "The last thing I remember is… all of us being summoned to the old castle out on the edge of town…"

She blinked, and the black bird was gone.

* * *

 **Hey Guys! It's GOOD to be back! Anyhow, seems I've hit a small blockage with Snow White and the Stable Boy, but fear not! I'll tap into another creative vein eventually, but in the meantime I plan to continue posting regular updates for The Seven Deadly Sins! I have so many ideas I can't WAIT to implicate into this story! And in the next chapter there is gonna be... wait for it... a Flashback! So gear up for that!**

 _ **NEEEEEEEEXT TIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIME!**_


	11. Chapter 10: A Sin's Penance

**Chapter 10: A Sin's Penance**

 ** _Ten Years ago…_**

The capitol city was alight with festivities, fireworks being launched into the midday sky every few minutes to celebrate the crown princess's engagement to the prince of a neighboring kingdom. The union would surely bring prosperity to the citizens of Liones and of their sister kingdom of Camelot.

Every Holy Knight had already made their way to the nearest drinking establishment, partaking in the excitement that came with a future royal wedding. Drinks were a flowing, but seven particular knights were not participating in the festivities just yet, as Grand Master Ozpin himself had called them to the Watchtower on the edge of town.

"I was hoping to get in a few drinks to celebrate the engagement," Yang pouted as she led her comrades through the darkened corridors of the tower.

A figure in pearlescent white armor turned up her nose and scoffed, "You've never needed an excuse to knock them back before." The comment was made by a female voice, only it was croaking and withered like that of an old woman.

The golden-haired woman chuckled and rubbed the back of her head. "Guess you're right." she admitted.

Another figure, also female, and also clad in heavy armor, found it somewhat odd that Ozpin had called them here so suddenly. "Sounded like the Grand Master has something important to discuss." She observed, noticing how Oz had forgone celebrating with everyone else, which was not like him.

Nora, with her gleaming Warhammer slung across her shoulders, bounced forward with a giggle of glee on her face. "Maybe he wants to give us a special reward for our excellent handling of that business with the Troll Queen!"

Yang folded her arms behind her head, her ebony-iron gauntlets clanking lightly against her black and scarlet armor. "Well, it's all the same to me… let's get scolded and then go celebrate."

A tall figure decorated in shreds of dark metal around his shoulders that resembled feathers laughed, his voice groveled and slurred as if he'd already had a few drinks. "You expect a dressing-down?" he chided as they came to the grand doors that lead to the Grand Master's chambers.

Yang smirked as she shoved the heavy doors open, only to be met with a pitch-black room. The blond-haired brawler felt uneasy as she and her comrades looked into the darkness cloaking the Grand Master's chambers. He usually kept a torch lit, as a sign he was always able to be of service to his knights or his friends. Ozpin was not a man who enjoyed the inky nothingness of the dark. "Hey, we're here!" she called, her voice echoing off the walls and slithering through the eerie silence.

A thin veil of what used to be curtains fell from their stands, flooding the room in light, and forcing the seven mercenaries to gaze in horror at what laid within that room. Yang felt herself gag as the smell finally hit her, "Grand Master!"

Ozpin, or rather… what _used_ to resemble him, was mercilessly impaled on a multitude of spears, swords, and arrows, each one dripping with blood that pooled beneath his dangling feet. The walls and floor were scarred with gashes and cracks, as if the Grand Master had put up one hell of a fight before being so violently pinned up in such a way. The stench of iron and death smothered Yang like a cloud, almost making her choke as she covered her mouth to keep her most recent meal from surfacing.

She couldn't bring herself to look away from his lifeless amber eyes, once filled with such warmth and wisdom. She did not have to look away to know the faces of her comrades matched her own.

"That's brutal…" the feathered man commented, blunt but disgusted all the same.

Nora looked as if she'd seen a ghost, her normally rosy and bright features pale and clammy. "He's a pincushion," she whimpered.

The old woman's voice, shaking with equal horror and disdain, spoke with an icy disposition. "Who would _do_ this?"

"More importantly, why did they target the leader of the Holy Knights?" the younger armored woman wondered aloud, her voice dripping with cunning and studious questions she chose not to ask. The Grand Master of the Holy Knights is not just assassinated by some nobody from another kingdom or possibly their own, a Knight as powerful as Ozpin does not just die, and by the looks of the decimated room, he had fought valiantly to his dying breath. Just like the vows he had taken in his youth.

The feathered man knew this well, he had known the Grand Master longer than anyone, most likely longer than Yang herself. Oz wasn't assassinated, he was _murdered_ , and by the looks of the carnage, by somebody who held an obvious grudge against him. "You're right," he muttered. "The Grand Master is the lynchpin of the kingdom's defense, he's practically a _war-god_ … whoever killed him, is a _traitor_ who must be plotting to overthrow Liones."

Nora clenched her fists around the handle of her Warhammer. "And they knew exactly what his death would mean."

The old woman visibly tensed, holding a hand to her temple, "I sense something!"

Yang did not waste a minute ripping the shredded remnants of curtains from the wall, blinking twice to adjust to the sudden light, and feeling her stomach plummet at what she saw outside the Watchtower. "What…"

Hundreds upon _thousands_ of fully armored Holy Knights waited for them at the entrance to the tower, armed to the teeth and lying in wait for their prey to emerge from the building. "We're surrounded by every knight in the kingdom!"

The others joined her, each of them reacting differently to their entrapment by the knights they had fought alongside for years, now seeing them as no-good traitors who murdered their Grand Master in cold blood. Nora gripped the handle of her hammer to try to still her trembling hands, "There are too many out there to count, what are they going to…"

The building shook with the blow of magical energy, chunks of the ceiling sprinkling down on them. The feathered man cursed, "Damn, they've started their attack!"

Yang blinked and clenched her fists, turning to her comrades and disguising her sorrow with anger. "We'll figure it out, but for now let's split up, we'll meet again later!" she commanded, lilac eyes burning with the defeat that came whenever she was forced to retreat. Now was not the time for glorious battle however, they were daftly outnumbered, and the only one willing to stand strong by their side, lay skewered to the wall.

The feathered man gave a firm nod, "Understood."

The seven knights left each other, taking different routes in order to escape the tower unscathed. Yang gave Ozpin one last solemn look, before cutting her losses and opening the secret passage in the wall, one Oz had shown her when first entering his chambers so many years previous.

While she held hope she would see her team again, they would not be the Seven Deadly Sins for a very long time.

* * *

 _Captain, I'm sorry…_

* * *

"Those words are the last thing I remember, the rest is blank," the golden-haired Dragon Sin explained, Adam's scarlet blade still pressed into her neck. "The next thing I knew, I was waking up in a cellar somewhere… that's where I met Zwei!"

Blake's feline ears twitched. "So… you mean to tell me you didn't kill the Grand Master? You were framed?"

Yang did not meet her gaze, choosing to remain as still as possible to give Adam the impression she was cooperating with his demands. A man driven by vengeance is a very dangerous man indeed. However, Blake saw the way her lavender eyes flickered to her for a moment, before she blinked, and the look had vanished. To the untrained eye, it could've been nothing but a trick of the light, but Blake wanted to believe it was Yang silently reassuring her that yes, they were framed, and that she would never take the life of a loving leader and father like Ozpin.

Adam did not share her belief, "That makes no difference to me." He growled, pressing his blade into his target's flesh harder, and drawing a disturbing sort of joy from the droplet of dark blood that ran down her neck in a vibrant rivulet against her skin. "Rebels and traitors who plotted to overthrow the kingdom… that's all you are."

Blake's fists tightened unto they turned white, "That's enough!" she cried, desperate to somehow get through to her childhood friend. "You came all this way to bring justice to the ones who murdered your father! Now they tell a different story and you're just going to accept that?! You aren't going to question it any further?" the idea that the Adam she hoped was still inside this bloodthirsty man, would just write off Yang's plea of innocence as mere lies, instead of holding the slightest drop of truth. If he so valued the image that was the leader of the Seven Deadly Sins like he had as a child, then why kill out of blind self-righteousness instead of true justice.

"If Yang truly did murder Grand Master Ozpin, wouldn't you see through her lie?"

As passionate as her speech may have been, it did not look like Adam had heard any of it. He turned and gave her a dull look, as if he was deaf to all in the world save for the object of his vengeance. "Blake…" he whispered, an emotion laced through his voice that the princess could not identify. She had never heard him speak to her that way before. "The kingdom wants you taken into protective custody, but I haven't the slightest interest in that."

With his free hand, he reached out to caress the feline Faunus's cheek with a tenderness that made her flinch violently away from him. Whatever had happened to her friend, really had changed him, and it made Blake's skin crawl just thinking about it.

Adam sighed at her rejection of his touch, his arm burning as the coil tightened, taking back his sword and lining it up with Yang's pulse point. The blond had remained silent up until the bull man's unwelcomed touch to the princess, which made the Dragon Sin clench her jaw in irritation.

"Alive or dead, it's all the same, to me you are no more than a grain of sand on the road that is being traveled." He reached for her again, but this time he brushed his fingertips along the hem of Blake's top, the scarlet chains shattering as he did so. Disgusted, the black-haired girl roughly pushed his hand away, but this did not seem to upset him. "Go while I still have patience, the _Sins_ and I have unfinished business."

Staring in disbelief, Blake stood in silence for a moment before she fixed him with a harsh glare. The blade of Gambol Shroud sung against the sheath as she moved to stand between Adam and the two Sins, her sword poised and ready as she refused to let him pass. "I won't let you."

For a brief moment, Yang could have sworn she saw Adam's hand tremble around the handle of his sword, almost like he was afraid, but then the shake was gone, almost as if it was never there to begin with.

His entire arm was scorching with venomous fire, spreading through his veins like liquid hell as it traveled from the ends of his fingers to where his heart beat in his chest. Adam could feel his grip around his sword shake slightly as he tried to ignore the pain, but it was near impossible now. The tighter the snake became on his wrist, the more his blood burned; only cooled by the blood of another adversary coating his body like the armor he wore.

Before his hand could falter, he swung his free arm, striking Blake across the face in an ugly clap that echoed throughout the forest. She fell with a startled cry, crumpled, as her weapon lay useless beside her. Yang and Nora called out to her, one voice showing more anger than the other, but his strike had rendered her unconscious.

"Now that we've dispensed with that… _interruption_ …"

Yang fixed a glare on him that burned far worse than the venom inside him ever could, furious at his raising his hand to the princess. However, despite his horrific mistakes, Yang still wanted to believe the boy who wanted to be a knight was still there. Somewhere. "Come on Addy… you sure you wanna do this?" she asked, her eyes locked on Adam as she fought to control her worry for the downed Faunus girl. "In the old days, you ever were able to beat me… Remember?"

His lips curled into a smirk, and though Yang hoped to catch a glimpse of the playfulness he once held, his smile held only a cruel malice. "But that was a long time ago…" he leaned in close to her, looking into her eyes with his mocking grin. "I am now more powerful than _any_ of the Seven Deadly Sins."

The woman shrugged, "I don't know, maybe you're right… but you could be wrong too."

His gloved hand tightened around his sword as he drew back into a fighting stance. "Then we should find out, first I'll release your bonds." He raised his free hand to break her chains, but she turned her head away, effectively stopping him.

"Well, I appreciate that… but I got it."

Yang sucked in a breath, expanding her chest and thrusting her arms out, shattering Adam's chains into useless shards of metal scattered on the ground. Electric sparks spotted across the chains containing Nora, breaking with ease as she melted them with her magic. "We could've escaped whenever we felt like it."

Yang spared a glance at Blake, the princess still unmoving on the forest floor with her ebony hair fanned out around her head like a dark halo. She briefly wondered if she could wake her with a kiss like it said in all the stories, but she doubted the girl would appreciate it, she wasn't an over affectionate person anyway.

The horned Holy Knight did not flinch or cower in her presence, now that she was free to do whatever she wished to him. Just how he liked it, a hindered enemy is not worthy enough to be called an enemy at all. "Just know, that if _I_ felt like it, I could annihilate you _instantly._ "

The blond had enough arrogance within her to snicker, "Kinda doubt that."

Adam raised his sword, bowed into a fighting stance as he looked up his old mentor with nothing but bitterness and hate. "I shall use my sword to kill you."

Yang only smiled, this one warmer and kinder than her teasing smirk. "Right back at you, big guy." She waved a hand to her demigod comrade, as if dismissing her ethereal power in favor of fighting the red-haired Faunus one on one. "Don't interfere, 'kay Nora?"

The ginger pouted, "Aw… you get _all_ the fun."

Adam sneered, "Don't want to risk my defeating you both at once?" his foot slid back into a lunge, but Yang's boot landed with a puff of dust beside him, blocking his stance from falling into what it needed to be for a proper strike.

"Can't you tell when your elder is trying to be nice?"

Their gazes were locked, until lilac orbs fell into a determined expression, and the man's sharp teeth grit in anger. They both prepared their weapons, and attacked. Adam's sword oozed its crimson power as he swung to decapitate Yang, but the woman raised her arms into an X to absorb his strike into her gauntlets. His eyebrows furrowed as he realized his attack did not connect, but was quick to move to the side as the woman came from his flank with a punch that was too slow to connect.

"Like I said, right back at you, remember that?"

"And I told you…" Yang let out a small gasp as she heard his voice beside her ear. "You'll be dead!"

Before he could slice into her neck, she swung her arm back, blocking with her gauntlet once more but not actually attacking to do him harm. "Come on!" he edged.

Adam lunged for her, but Yang stepped back and jumped away as more of his chains emerged from his aura in attempt to keep her still long enough to land a blow but to no avail, she was too fast. "I've got to admit, you've really improved over the years." She quipped, leaping to land above him on a mangled branch.

"Yet you still believe you are superior to me!" within seconds Adam was before her, his sword clashing against the black metal guarding her arms with a deafening shriek of colliding metal and magical power, strong enough to split the tree Yang was standing in in two. "I can sense it…" he hissed. "You're beginning to feel a bit of fear creeping in…"

"Am I?" her jovial response was cut short as the tree beneath their feet collapsed, the combatants leapt upwards, locked in eye contact as they waited for one or the other to strike again. Adam let loose a fierce growl as he swung and stabbed with his sword as quick as an arrow, yet every time Yang blocked his attacks.

She huffed, "Well you're persistent!" Adam backed her up against another tree, wasting no time as he moved to kill, cutting it down in one swing and disturbing the dust settled on the ground. To his annoyance, Yang emerged from the cloud unharmed, deflecting more of his chains with a smile on her face, but she was too cocky for her own good. From behind she barely had a chance to move before Adam landed a powerful hit to her stomach, knocking her back into a boulder with an ugly spider web of cracks.

"Too slow!" he declared as he attacked from above while she was weakened.

While not far from them, the thundering of their battle had jostled the unconscious princess, riling Blake to awaken with a pained groan. A horrible echo of destruction rung in her skull, as she looked out into the fog, the blond brawler nowhere to be seen.

Golden eyes narrowed. "Yang…"

Yang clenched her fists around nothing but dirt, sporting a rather nasty bruise on her cheek as well as grime from the dust floating around the forest, but despite her aching body, she let out a string of hearty chuckles from her sore belly. She pushed herself to stand on her feet once again, cracking and popping her joints. "I can't believe you've gotten this powerful…" she coughed, spitting out a mouthful of dust.

"Don't worry…" Adam growled from behind her, his sword pulsing and vibrating with the sheer amount of magic he had infused into it with his own aura. "I'll bring down the others with you soon enough."

With a roar, he stabbed his sword as deep into Yang's flesh as it wound go, her skin breaking in a gush of scarlet fluids as she let loose a silent cry and fell to the ground in a heap of bloodied blond hair.

Nora looked on in disbelief, having never seen her leader defeated before, she often questioned if Yang even bled the same blood as other human warriors. "Captain…?" she whimpered.

Instead of get back up with a smirk on her face and a pun at the ready…

Yang was still and silent…

And Adam felt nothing.

* * *

Yang lay in a pool of her own blood, lilac eyes dulled by the pain as Adam looked down upon her with nothingness in his gaze. With pure apathy in his movements, the masked Faunus man uncaringly kicked her body over so she could face him.

"Yang Xiao Long, The Seven Deadly Sins' Dragon Sin of Wrath… do you have any last words?"

Her fingers twitched as she blinked slowly, growing tired the more her blood drained from her human body. "The Sins…" she croaked. "What… happened to them…? You must've… head something… right? Where… have the other ones… gone?"

She sounded so weak, nothing like the overconfident fireball she displayed for all the world to see. Adam sheathed his sword, the sheer of metal numb in the blond woman's ears. "Very well… I'll tell you."

The Dragon Sin was the object of his hatred, revenge forged by flesh, and the very embodiment of the things he wanted so desperately to wipe from the face of the planet. Yet, he found it in him to grant her one small mercy, before she was left to die from her wounds alone. "Of the remaining five, three are still at large and are not yet accounted for… but, the other two have been dealt with." He explained.

"The Fox Sin of Greed is being kept under tight security at Baste Prison… and the Grizzly Sin of Sloth has already been slain, interred at the Necropolis."

Yang's eyes drifted shut, the news a push of hope as well as a crushing regret. Adam looked down at her with disdain, as if she were nothing more than a squashed bug on the sole of his boot. "But you needn't worry; I'll make certain they all join you shortly."

She managed a smile despite her aching body. "Thank you… Awesome!" lilac eyes sprung open, bursting with newfound energy as she leapt to her feet, as if the wound carved into her skin was nothing more than a cat scratch. Yang turned and gave Adam a playful wink, "Little Addy…"

He said nothing, as the burning behind his eyes only intensified.

* * *

 **Wow it's been a while! Sorry about that, been studying for tests and I joined an SAT tutoring group so that's been fun... But i'm happy to say I'm here with another chapter! Sadly though, I haven't made any progress with getting inspired for Snow White and the Stable Boy... But I will! Anyway, like, subscribe, review, all that good stuff that keeps me going! Ciao for now!**


	12. Chapter 11: A Little Girl's Dream

**Chapter 11: A Little Girl's Dream**

 _To save her kingdom, Blake Belladonna, third princess of Liones, began searching for the legendary rebels,_

 _The Seven Deadly Sins._

 _On her journey, she was accompanied by Yang Xiao Long, Dragon Sin of Wrath._

 _They encountered a demigod girl in the Forest of White Dreams, who turned out to be the Sin known as Nora Valkyrie, the Serpent Sin of Envy._

 _Just as she agreed to join them, the Holy Knight Adam Taurus appeared in pursuit of Yang._

 _After a close battle, it appeared as if Yang had fallen at the Holy Knight's hand._

 _However…_

 _"Awesome!" Yang leapt to her feet, golden curls bouncing as she gave Adam a grin and a wink. "Little Addy,"_

* * *

Adam Taurus made no move to finish what he started by killing Yang in cold blood, but he also did not move to retreat either.

"Baste Prison and the Necropolis huh?" she voiced, snapping her fingers as if making a decision on the fly before swiping her hand across her cheek to wipe away a smear of her own blood. "I'll check out one or the other."

The masked Holy Knight before her only sighed, disappointed that his power had not been enough to kill the Sin of Wrath. "So that was it?" he spat. "You wish to know your comrades' whereabouts, so you allowed me to strike you down, right?"

The blond woman gave a nod and a smirk, "Why don't we finish this another time, okay?"

His hand itched to take hold of his sword and run her through as many times as it took before her heart stopped beating, just as she had done to his father. "I think not." Adam pulled his weapon and thrust it towards her chest with every intent to pierce her sun kissed flesh, but before his blade could touch her, Yang moved behind him too quickly for his eyes to comprehend.

He let loose a roar of fury, swinging and stabbing for her repeatedly only to be met with air. His anger clouded his sight, but the burn of the snake around his arm brought him back, making him realize his foolish mistake. Yang's dodging of his strikes were not random, but meant to direct him to be cornered between her and the demigod known as the Sin of Envy.

Adam growled, "This is goodbye."

Yang gave a curt wave, "See yah!"

Nora thrust her arms towards him, her tendrils of lightning wrapping around him like sentient ropes and binding him tightly before he could flee. "You heard the captain!" the ginger-haired demigod chirped, using her magical thrall over the lightning to lift Adam off the ground. "Some other time!"

"Unhand me!" he shouted, chains of crimson glowing iron emerging from his body and attempting to break Nora's hold on him, but the power of Thor the Almighty was not magic easily outdone, as her electric bounds held strong.

"Here's a tip for you, okay?" she smiled, warm and inviting but alive with the glee that came from defeating an enemy. "Girls get really annoyed when slimy Holy Knights like you hit a princess!"

Her power exploded with lightning as Adam was thrown far into the horizon, disappearing into the fog as Yang waved goodbye. She gave Nora a grateful two-fingered salute, "Hey thanks, nice throw." The pink-clad girl had her eyes squinted at the distance, trying to determine how far he landed. Despite her new record, her armor was in terrible shape.

Yang grimaced slightly, "Whoa… that chest plate is ruined."

Nora glanced down at her breasts, pouting when she saw the various cracks and dents in her armors from Adam's chains coiling too tight.

"Aw…" she whimpered.

After unbuckling the various straps that held her armor in place, Nora disposed of her ruined breastplate, exposing her bountiful chest squeezed into the white blouse and armored corset she wore, declaring it salvageable. The only damage done to her clothing was the tear in the center of her chest, displaying quite a bit of cleavage, but it made no difference to her, she was never stingy about the human body as much as other people were anyway.

" _Hey!_ " an irritated voice barked, turning the heads of both Sins. When he had been let loose of Adam's chains, Zwei was quick to lead Blake back to their companions, even if the princess was still somewhat dazed from her childhood friend's brutal hit. "You've got some nerve leaving me dig a hole like some dog-tied mutt! But it'll be _my_ turn next time!"

The corgi stomped his little paws, steaming with anger at being left behind, while Blake seemed oddly unaffected by the notion. "Are either of you injured?" she asked, her voice grating and scratchy from her fall, but slowly being healed by her Aura.

Another fun thing about Aura, was that not only did it allow people to tap into their individual magical power, it also supplied healing abilities. Sort of like how a cut scabs, only cranked up to eleven. Blake's face did not even show any bruising or swelling from Adam's strike.

Yang wanted to check her over when they had more privacy, just to be sure of course. "We're good," she replied, Zwei mumbling angrily all the while.

"Dirty dog, that guy was!" he yipped, clearly still upset at being hog-tied, or in this case, _dog-tied_.

"Zwei, _you're_ a dog!" the blond-haired woman jibed, snickering into her hand as her canine friend gave her a scowl that was just too cute to be intimidating.

Nora squealed, locking her hands together as she gushed. "Who's so adorable!"

The corgi tensed up, inching more towards Blake so she could protect him from the animal-constrictor who wanted nothing more than to squeeze him into oblivion. The Faunus princess rolled her eyes, her feline gaze falling to the blond woman's torn and bloody coat, letting a small gasps escape her lips as she rushed to Yang's side. "You're hurt!" she exclaimed, gently feeling up the woman's arm to pinpoint the exact location of her wound beneath her ruined clothing.

Lilac eyes blinked, honestly having forgotten about the injury Adam had given her, remembering that it was _her_ blood she was covered in. She shrugged, "I'm fine, it's not that big a deal."

Blake scowled, " _Not that big a deal?_ You're covered in blood!" it was likely the pair did not notice how Blake's hand had moved from Yang's shoulder all the way down her arm, or how they had locked eyes in a very heated conversation. They might not have noticed, but Nora certainly did.

She hated to ruin the moment, but she just _had_ to speak her mind. "Hey!" two heads turned to the ginger-haired Sin. "You should remove the coat so you can better see where the injury is, so go on and take it off!"

Blake blinked as her ears turned pink. "Wh-what?"

"The Captain's been looking for a right-hand-girl anyway, and that job obviously belongs to you, if she's hurt _you_ should take care of her!" she explained, starry-eyed and bushy-tailed the entire time while Yang smirked with a wiggle of her eyebrows and Blake looked like she wanted to sink into the earth and disappear.

Zwei sniffed and waggled his paws angrily. "Hey, aren't you guys forgetting something here?! I just got my butt kicked!" the small dog's owner kneeled next to him, softly petting his lower back.

"Right here you said? Feels kind of swollen," she asked.

The corgi shook his head. "No, I'm just a bit husky."

Yang moved to rub his front paws. "Here?"

"No, nothing besides my hush-puppies…" Zwei seemed to realize that his blond friend's snickering was because she was setting him up for more of her dog-related puns. He swiped his paws back and barked, "Quit fooling around!"

Before he could yip any further, Nora had scooped him into her arms, snuggling her face into his plush body and giggling. "Don't worry! I'll give you plenty of belly-rubs later!"

As much as he hated to admit it, belly-rubs sounded like just the needed remedy for his _injury_ as well as his temper. "Why is it that the dog-lady is the only one who cares about me?" he whimpered, the gazes of both Yang and Blake taking on amused and unamused expressions.

Being spoiled by Nora was not shaping out to be good for Zwei.

* * *

Miles away from the Forest of White Dreams, in a small village on a small hill, laid a church filled with people. A dozen at most, many of the village goers had heard rumors of the return of the Seven Deadly Sins, and desperately sought answers through their prayers.

They were all kneeled before a statue at the front of the chapel, a female figure dressed in flowing amber fabrics and holding a cornucopia filled with food to her breast. One of four virgin deities worshipped by a large population of Liones. The villagers knotted their hands together, whispering their blights to the Fall Maiden so she may listen and heal them.

"Gentle Lady…please return the young men from this village who have been taken away by the kingdom…"

"Dear Maiden… I pray you will punish the Holy Knights for what they've done…"

A breeze entered through the window, caressing a man's face softly, prompting him to look up to the Maiden and see a flash of light outside the window behind the statue.

Like an angel fallen from grace, the form of a man, in a blinding ball of powerful light, came crashing through the ceiling of the church in a violent thunder of crumbling stone. The blow shook the earth, sending vibrations throughout the entire village as they watched the house of their faith collapse before them.

The bodies of the one who sought prayer lay scattered among the rubble, dying slowly beneath the obliterated remnants of the Fall Maiden statue.

"Retri… bution… Dear Maiden…" one of them moaned as he breathed his last breath.

An armored boot fell in step, walking right past the lifeless man with an upturned nose as if his corpse bored him. "Someone… help us…"

The cries of the dying fell on deaf ears as Adam strode through the chapel that had fallen to his might. His wrist tightened as he felt ruby-eyes gaze up at him through the sleeve of his coat, and the microscopic pinch in his chest simply faded away the farther he walked away from the destroyed church.

"Oh well…" he told no one, turning away from the suffering people, and leaving them behind him.

* * *

The sun was high in the sky by the time the group had made it out of the forest to find Beo waiting for them, being quick to climb atop the mighty demon and make their exit post haste. Now they sat comfortably around a table in the bar while Yang was off with her own devices, leaving Zwei at the complete mercy of the Sin of Envy.

Which turned out to not be all that bad.

The ginger-haired girl was rubbing, scratching, and tickling away at the corgi's fluffy white belly. Zwei let his tongue hand out as he shook his leg for more. "That hit the spot… _so good…_ " he moaned, making Nora smile as she rubbed him some more. A growl teetered in his throat, still holding a grudge against the jerk who chained him up like a pound-hound. "That Holy Knight _bastard_ , next time I see him I'll give him rabies!"

Blake did not seem to be paying any attention to the pair, opting to rest her almost entirely healed cheek in her palm and stare out into space. She had a lot on her mind in regards to Adam; she felt like such a fool for being so blind. As she got older, the boy she played with began to train without her, and though she was hurt by it at first, she had brushed it aside as him just being a normal habit boys had as they grew. If only she had seen his corruption sooner... she could have _done_ something, she could have…

"So is it true? You actually _know_ that guy?"

Feline ears perked up at Zwei's question, seeing that he took a break from Nora's affection and now they were both looking at her curiously. The princess stared down at her interlocked hands, brushing her thumb over her knuckle, as she tended to do when she was upset as a means to comfort herself. "Yes."

It was hard to see Adam in a way so different from the way she saw him when they were young. As the boy who helped her climb higher trees, and pick more flowers, and chase her through the palace halls when her sisters and father were too busy to play with her. "Adam was originally assigned to guard my older sister Pyrrha, but he felt like a big brother to me… he watched over us as if we were all a part of the same family."

It stung to remember such innocent times, of when Pyrrha, as the eldest princess, became engaged to the crown prince of a neighboring kingdom, spending more time with her new fiancé instead of playing with Blake and Adam. The two Faunus children had formed a bond like no other, Blake would always say he was her best friend so easily, but now… calling him an enemy put a painful branding over her heart.

The princess sighed, pulling her yellow orbs away from her folded hands. "His father was the Grand Master, and even after he was killed… Adam continued serving us… so… why…"

Her mind drew back to the innocent village of Vanya, plagued by Adam's desire for vengeance and forced to turn on one another because their resources had been cut like a measly thread by his sword. Or how Yang had nearly been killed by the Holy Knight's spear that had struck her from the sky like a falling crimson star. Her fists clenched as she remembered wandering weakly through the Forest of White Dreams, dizzy from the hit she had taken from his hand, and being forced to watch as her friend cut down the kingdom's last hope, as if she was nothing more than a nuisance to him. Her throat clenched as she tried to call out, but her shock and fear had frozen her in place.

She hadn't felt so weak and helpless since the night she escaped the palace; running like a coward as the doors to her father's throne room were destroyed in a burst of molten red…

Blake gasped, her eyes dilating as she was taken to another place in her mind. "It… _can't_ be…" she whispered, hoping, _praying,_ that what she was now remembering was a lie. Her ears were folded flat against her head, her fists trembling slightly, "Was father arrested by…"

She was so lost in her emotions; her fear, her bewilderment, her betrayal by the boy she had once called a friend, that even Zwei resting his head on her lap could not coax her out of her blank state. "What's wrong?" he asked. "Are you okay?"

Blake did not answer him for a long time.

" _There's no going back to the way things were… is there?"_


	13. Chapter 12:Blizzard, Crow, Fox, and Bear

**Chapter 12: Blizzard, Crow, Fox, and Bear**

Yang sat with Nora atop the balcony of the tavern, looking out over the expanse of land as Beo trekked onward through the countryside. The blond had brought out three of the seven wanted-posters hung up in the bar, examining the honestly well drawn portraits.

"Apparently, Qrow Branwen the Sin of Greed, was thrown behind bars," she explained, holding up the flier of the scruffy looking man with feathery hair and rough stubble. "And Weiss Schnee the Sin of Sloth, is already dead and buried by now… you think that's true?" she asked, finding it hard to believe the stubborn old hag could be six-feet-under, despite her fragile aged appearance as depicted by the piece of paper.

Nora's attention was trained on her own wanted-poster, tracing the dark lines of her sketched hair all the way down her neck where the peeking of a birthmark shaped like a lightning bolt resided on her physical form. She'd once been told it was a sign of her heritage as a child of Thor the Almighty, a god who ruled over the skies with an iron fist and an iron will. She hummed in thought, "Well, I'm not really sure… after all a lot can happen in ten years." A smile made its way across her lips as she showed her picture to Yang with a coy wink. "Besides, look at how cute I am! Can't even tell I'm older than seventeen-hundred, can you?"

The blond shrugged, "But, that's just a drawing, it's made-up."

She swung her body back over the railing, jumping back onto the balcony in one fell swoop. "Alright, I've decided!" she declared, punching her fist into her palm. Nora went back to looking at her poster, lost in her own image for some reason. "First up, we should go to Baste Prison and grab Qrow."

The ginger threw her legs over the edge of the balcony. "Sounds good to me, Captain!"

Blake and Zwei had joined them after a while, the small dog hoping some fresh air and company could pull the princess out of her funk, but the Faunus girl just seemed to be staring out into the distance, searching for something that was never going to be there. He sniffed, "What made you want to pick that place first?"

"It's closer."

"You're such a chump,"

Golden eyes squeezed shut, her jaw clenched as she forced her words out with stubbornness to match her fathers. "No." the trio turned to her, slightly surprised at the silent princess deciding to speak up. "Tending to your injuries should be our top priority, if we continue like this, then facing another Holy Knight could mean…" her voice trailed off as she stared at the smears of blood still vivid on Yang's clothes.

The blond looked at her softly, a long pause stretching between the two before Yang sprung forward and flung her arms around Blake, burying her face into her feline ears and planting her hand firmly on her behind, giving it a firm squeeze.

"This might make me better." Her voice came out muffled due to all of Blake's dark hair smothering her speech.

The high-pitched keen that escaped the princess' lips would probably be heard in villages miles away, her face turned a brilliant scarlet as she dug her hands into Yang's shoulders and shoved her back with every bit of power she could muster. "No it couldn't!" she screeched, crossing her arms over her chest to somehow stifle her raging heartbeat.

"Of _course_ it can't!" Zwei barked.

Nora grinned impishly behind them, waggling her eyebrows with every possible implication oozing from her teasing turquoise eyes.

Blake turned away from Yang, but the older woman surprised her by petting the space between her ears in a tender fashion similar to the way her father used to do when she was distressed. Coming from the Dragon Sin, it was oddly comforting and certainly not unwelcome compared to the risqué gropes and grabs Yang usually threw her way.

"Come on Blakey, don't worry about me, this is no big deal." Gold met lilac as the Faunus gazed up into the Sin's eyes, pulled into the warmth and friendliness they naturally provided. "A little sleep and I'll be good to go! G'night!" she tucked her hands into the pockets of her coat before exiting the balcony and leaving Blake to wonder just why Yang was so touchy-feely with her, and not an equally attractive woman like Nora.

The pitter-patter of Zwei's paws on the wooden floorboards came to a stop beside her feet, planting himself next to her. "Knowing her, I thought for sure she was going to ask you to help keep her warm in bed."

For a brief moment, Blake was tempted to go and check on her, to see if she was _actually_ going to sleep or just drinking her fill at the bar, but she forced herself to remain in her place. She would not be the subject of the woman's teasing over her justified concern for her. It may sound shallow, but how was Blake supposed to save her kingdom if the strongest person of the Seven Deadly Sins was too cocky to rest when injured, then they would never get anywhere. She sighed, "I'm going to go read." Going to reenter the tavern when Nora chimed in.

"Don't get distracted!" she giggled, affectively making Blake's cheeks dust themselves in a light pink that hopefully the Serpent Sin did not notice as she opened the door and closed it behind her all the quicker.

* * *

Reading was something Blake had always found joy in, be it a poet's manuscript or a long adventure story about heroes and monsters, the words on the pages had always seemed to wrap around her and take her somewhere else. To a place that was not a place in a time that was not a time, but after nearly an hour of staring blankly at the same paragraph, she had given up on the book and put it back on her nightstand for later.

Her thoughts were too wandering to focus on something as trivial as a book, thoughts about Adam and Yang's injuries, her father and sisters and if they were even still alive. If Adam had the ruthlessness to strike down his childhood mentor without remorse, then what had he done to her family…? What was he even capable of now?

She decided to busy herself by visiting Yang's room, as she had wanted to do earlier, knocking lightly on the painted green door. "Yang?" she called after receiving no answer. "We should bandage your wound before it gets infected."

Again, not a sound was heard from within the room. Blake's ears flicked curiously, as she reached to open the door, finding it odd at how quiet Yang was being. Sure, she had said she was resting, but the princess knew that the blond was a snorer. Such silence was unsettling.

The door pushed open with a creek, the echo traveling all around the neatly made room. Nothing seemed out of place, and the bed was untouched, but Blake could only look in horror at what lay before her.

True to her word, Yang had went to rest, but she had not even made it to the bed before her injury had gotten the better of her. Loss of blood and lack of treatment had bitten her hard in the back as she lay on the floor in a heap of scattered blond hair. Her blood was smeared across the wood in patterns that were clearly remnants of Yang trying to pull herself back up before collapsing from the severity of her wounds.

 _"Yang!"_

* * *

 ** _Baste Prison_**

The desolate red desert wasteland that housed the most heavily guarded prison in Liones lived up to its reputation, blistering heat paired with the scorching sun bearing down on any pour soul who ventured out past the prison borders with the strength of the devil himself.

Baste Prison was the only structure around for miles, rumored to be so cruel and vicious to its prisoners that any man sentenced to be sent there would rather die of thirst and exhaustion in the desert. To think that only four Holy Knights were in charge of the place would make any man tremble.

Within the decorative room that housed the four Holy Knights, a girl with cropped green hair knelt before two of them as her superiors played an intense game of chess. "I have news from the palace." She told them. "There's been a sighting, two Sins spotted at the Forest of White Dreams; as such it's believed that they'll come here to free _him_."

The female knights seemed uninterested in the words the green-haired girl spoke as they sat across from each other. They were both clad in armor and nearly identical in physical appearance, only one of them was dressed in red with hair cut short, while the other wore white with long black hair to compliment the look of stunning grace.

"Oh my…" the woman in red chimed, moving her knight to take her twin sister's bishop. "The Seven Deadly Sins are finally coming this way, are they?" she crossed her legs with a dramatic flare, smirking like a spider with a newly captured fly in its web. The Holy Knight of the group known as the Weird Fangs, Miltia Malachite, was known for her meticulous disposition.

Her sister, older by three minutes, Melanie Malachite, was less playful, but just as clever if not more so. "The question is, will they come straight here or stop at that nearby town, either way we should prepare to welcome them." She reached forward, taking ahold of her rook piece and using it to take her sister's queen.

Miltia pouted, "Oh phooey, you make the ickiest moves Melanie."

The woman in white smirked in a way that was wiser than her sister. "Hm… your turn Miltia."

The green-haired girl from before darted her cherry-red eyes between the twins, "Um…"

Miltia waved her off, dismissing the girl like her obvious concern regarding the Sins was nothing more than a child afraid of the dark, unnecessary and a bit pathetic. "There's no need to worry at all Emerald, this prison is an experimental fortress built specifically with this upcoming battle in mind, it's not a place that can be taken so easily… even by people like the Seven Deadly Sins," she sneered at their name, clearly thinking them not worthy of her time or care.

Emerald did not however share this lack of concern, her narrowed red eyes clashing with her kneeled position. She did not respect the twins, but she was forced to show it them. Seemingly, out of nowhere, a figure stood behind her, the smell of smoke wafting into her nostrils and alerting her of his presence before he even uttered a word.

"Indeed," said a man in little armor, instead favoring a white coat and feathered hat, a cane clutched in his hand as he puffed out a ring of smoke from his cigar. "And besides, we, the Weird Fangs, are here." Said Roman Torchwick, leader of the acclaimed Weird Fangs and self-declared gentleman of Liones. He often chose to forego things like armor, thinking them tacky and clunky on his frame, preferring fine fabrics and expensive cigars instead. Truly, a Holy Knight to look up to, Emerald thought sarcastically.

"Yes of course, Sir Roman." As a Holy Knight Apprentice, Emerald was forced to obey and follow mockeries of the kingdom like Roman and the twins, who sought nothing more than their own riches. Did they not want respect, power, or the freedom that came with the title of a Holy Knight?

In the far corner of the room, a bear of a man sat in an ornate chair, sipping at a goblet of wine and grunting from time to time. "But still…" he grumbled. "I have to wonder if they really will come." Out of all the Weird Fangs, Hei Xiong was the one who took his position seriously. He still sought only wealth, but he knew a threat when he saw one, namely a threat like the Seven Deadly Sins.

Miltia giggled mockingly, "Come on Junior, I have a hard time believing our prisoner is worth so much to them that they'd take on such a huge risk, he hasn't even seen a single moment of sunlight since we captured him _five years ago_ … nor has he been granted the freedom to move or utter a word." The twin in red tapped her chin thoughtfully, her scarlet-painted fingernail gleaming in the light. "In fact, he's hardly even _eaten_ , he's being tortured _slowly_ until his _last breath_."

Roman twirled his cane, grinning with his cigar between his teeth. "Their newfound companion notwithstanding, we outnumber them still."

Melanie moved her rook to take Miltia's king, tipping the piece over and taking pleasure in the knock it made as it fell. "It's almost enough to make one feel pity for the legend who was once called the _Sin of Greed…"_

* * *

In the darkest pit of Baste Prison, a single cell door waited at the end of the longest corridor, layers of iron and steel forged into a wall strong enough to withstand the power of the Grand Masters themselves, all for just one man.

Only two guards stood outside the cell, ever vigilant as they watched over the prisoner day after day.

With a door as heavyset as this, one could find it unnerving if they entered and saw the man called the Fox Sin, pinned and mounted to the wall by iron nails and bound by chains thicker than trees. A metal gag held his jaw open, forbidding him from speaking, as his bonds forbade him from any sort of movement. Well, movement without the blinding agony of tearing flesh.

Despite the discomfort, a soft tune began to echo throughout the halls, slightly startling the guards at their posts.

"Huh? Humming?" he asked, looking around for anyone emerging from the shadows, but seeing nothing.

His comrade was equally confused, "Where's that coming from?"

Little did they know, that inside the enormously guarded cell, stuck to the wall, a lean but muscular man with only ragged black pants on his body, and lengthened black hair going down to brush against his back not to mention facial hair to match, began to hum a tune.

His crimson eyes stared out at nothing in particular as the notes emerged from his neglected vocal chords past his iron gag, the ever present fox tattoo on his side suddenly itching for the first time in ten years.

* * *

 ** _Approximately 8 miles northeast of Baste Prison, Dalmally Town_**

For a village located closer to the prison housing the most dangerous criminals in the kingdom than anywhere else in Liones, Dalmally was relatively peaceful. Children scurried throughout the paved streets innocently, and people shopped in the local market. It was a normal day, at least until the rumbling began.

Deep rumbles sounded in beats like those of footsteps, making the children halt in their games and stare up in awe at the sight before them.

A wolf bigger than any building in town came to a stop just at the edge of where the street began, the figure of an armored girl sliding down its leg onto the cobblestone appearing with a blond-haired woman on her back. "Hey!" she called to the townspeople. "Is there a…"

Nora did not finish her question before mothers grabbed their children and people began to flee into their homes, terrified by the sight of the gargantuan demon wolf. "It's the demon Beowolf!" they cried as they ran.

"That dog is humungous!" a young boy shouted before his father scooped him up and they disappeared with the crowd.

Nora grimaced, "No, wait a minute!" she adjusted Yang on her back, scanning the streets for any remaining people. "I just wanted to see if you have a doctor in this town!" the town was deserted, everyone had run away from Beo, leaving an unconscious Yang propped oddly on the ginger-haired demigod's back. "Captain…" she mumbled, frightened for the wellbeing of her leader. Yang hardly ever was injured, and even if she was, it was never so bad that she had collapsed.

She vaguely heard Blake and Zwei slide down Beo's leg to land beside her. "See? What did I tell you?" Zwei barked, his small legs moving as fast as he could make them as he sniffed around looking for anything that resembled a hospital.

Blake glanced at Yang's limp figure, feeling a pinch of dread form in her stomach. "Nora, you're much faster on your own, Zwei and I can look for a doctor down here while you search the rooftops."

Turquoise eyes narrowed dangerously as she fixed the princess with a scowl that was somewhat out of character for her. "Look, I get that you have a crush on the Captain but this is serious!" the black-haired Faunus blinked, taken aback by both the accusation and the clear signs of panic laced through Nora's outward bite.

"How can you help if everyone runs as soon as they see you?!"

The demigod girl tensed up, her teeth grinding together as she looked down at her boots.

A pause stretched between the trio, until Nora lifted her head just enough to see the determination burning in Blake's yellow orbs. Her pupils had even narrowed slightly, giving her the air of a black lion prepared to maul through any obstacle she came across.

She sighed, "Okay, you two go look for a doctor." Blake gave a firm nod before moving to help Nora move Yang from her back into Blake's arms, the blond woman being just as heavy as she anticipated. However, do to years of training, her muscles were more than capable of bearing the weight.

The feline and canine duo raced off through the town with Yang in tow, leaving Nora to take a deep breath and look back at Beo, who was still rather frightening from a civilian standpoint. "Let's get you out of here boy," the demon wolf shook his massive head before turning and disappearing in his wall of black smoke, leaving the Crow Bar to sit innocently on the outskirts of town.

Nora nodded once, taking off down the street after Blake and Zwei, ignoring the buzzing of a winged insect flitting in her ear.

It was only a bug after all.

* * *

 **Hey guys! Are you excited for Fox Sin Qrow and Grizzly Sin Weiss? Cause I sure am! Also for any of you who've seen the anime and who know Gilthunder and Big Sis Margaret end up together, that will not be the case with this RWBY AU. I have plans for both Pyrrha and Adam here, that do not have them cross paths romantically, but they will be paired here, just not with each other. As for the snake around his wrist, it's a reptile, it's connected to a Faunus we've met, and it ties into his love life. Can you guess who it is? Guess in the reviews and i'll PM you if you get it right! Ciao for now!**


	14. Chapter 13: A Fly on the Wall

**Chapter 13: A Fly on the Wall**

The insect to buzz in the Sin of Envy's ear was no ordinary bug, its iridescent exoskeleton and seven amethyst colored eyes were not that of any creature without magic infused into it. Vermin like these were often used as familiars to Holy Knights, bugs being the favored choice of Holy Knight Miltiades of the Weird Fangs.

Still within the walls of Baste Prison, Miltia giggled manically at the vision her familiar had shown her. "It looks like I've found them," she explained to her fellow knights. "It's just as you said sis." Melanie examined her fingernails with a cocky smirk, silently gloating over her small victory.

From his ornate chair in the shadowed corner, Junior spoke up. "Will you be going then?"

The younger twin nodded, "Yes, I want to make the first move, then… who knows? I might make the _last_ move too!"

Miltia suddenly dawned a pair of metal claws befitting of the Beowolf, log and curved, serrated and deadly, all painted in a lush shade of red. They gleamed in the light, as did her jade eyes that sparked with malicious intent.

* * *

Nora sat idly on the roof of the town doctor's home, kicking her feet back and forth and fidgeting impatiently, occasionally glancing into the window to Yang's room where the blond lay quietly in bed with a cold compress pressed to her forehead. "Captain…"

Inside, the doctor gave the unconscious woman an herbal tea, blended with herbs to help her wounds heal. He had Blake part her lips so he could pour the liquid down her throat so she could absorb the medicine. "This blend is my own special concoction, I guarantee it will ease her suffering."

Blake's eyes remained focused on Yang, barely hearing the doctor speak. Every sound seemed to be muffled even with her advanced Faunus hearing. Her ears were tucked tightly beneath her bow once more, the princess having to keep them concealed so no townspeople would recognize her as the king's daughter. She remembered the silk ribbon peeking out of Yang's dresser, the black fabric standing out against the light colored wood as if the woman had intentionally left it there for her to find.

"Thank you for helping her," she told the doctor, her voice low and melancholy.

The man rubbed his chin, "Based on her injuries, it's a miracle she is still alive." He explained. "In addition to the rather deep sword wound, she has bruises all over her body as if she were chained up… how did a young woman get these?"

Blake thanked him once more before he left, trusting the black-haired girl to keep watch over the unconscious blond woman until he returned with her evening dosage. She had stared at her for quite some time, not moving from her place at her bedside save for the unsettled wringing of her fingers and occasional twitches of her bow.

Yang did not like when she wore the bow. She may not have ever said it aloud, but she was always trying to wrangle it away from the Faunus, teasing her with it or hiding it as some sort of game to get Blake's mind off heavy subjects. Subjects like her family or if what she was trying to do by bringing back the Seven Deadly Sins was worth it… or if it was all just a destined failure and the kingdom really was doomed.

She never even had to tell Yang that anything was wrong; the woman would just pet her ears out of nowhere and make some crude joke or lame pun that would completely take her mind away from her worries.

Blake took the compress from the brawler's forehead, dipping it into the basin of cold water on the table beside the bed, wringing out the excess water in silence. "This is my fault." She whispered, so quietly that Zwei almost did not hear her.

"Huh?"

The princess replaced the compress on Yang's head, moving some of her golden hair out of the way before laying the cloth over her burning skin. "I was so obsessed with stopping the Holy Knights, and finding the Seven Deadly Sins… that I didn't even think about Yang… or the fact that no matter how powerful she is… she's still human." Her fists tightened at her sides, knuckles turning white with her growing disgust with her carelessness.

Zwei rubbed his head against her leg. "Easy there Blake," he soothed.

She took a deep breath. "You're right… I just hope she gets better soon." She pushed more of Yang's hair out of her face, taking note of the soft golden waves running along her fingers.

"So, what are we supposed to do now?"

Blake did not want to leave her blond comrade's side, at least not until it was absolutely certain she was healed. She didn't want to risk it, not again, she would not leave. Baste Prison could wait, right now; the most important thing was tending to Yang so she may recover faster.

A girl in pink climbed into the room through the window, her boots making a thump as she dropped down. "I'm going to start heading to the prison now." Yellow eyes looked at her slightly taken aback, from what she had seen of Nora, being as serious as she was now, was not common of her. "Once the Captain wakes up, I'm pretty sure she'll want to go there right away and not waste any more time." The Valkyrie woman jumped back out the window, landing swiftly in the street and taking off in the direction of Baste Prison.

"Hey! Wait!" Blake called, sprinting to catch up with her with Zwei following close behind. "You shouldn't go alone, I'll come too."

"Not happening!"

The princess stopped when Nora stopped, turquoise locked with yellow. "I don't want you endangering yourself; it's not that I'm doubting your ability to fight, being a princess probably got you the best training in the kingdom, but right now Yang needs you more than I do." She thought back to when Yang had stolen her bow in the Forest of White Dreams, waving it around like a toy for a kitten to bat at. She had been playful, teasing, but then she had not even hesitated to fight Adam after he had hurt her. A man she had known since he was just a boy, who she had trained and taught like a student. Her sunny warmth had blazed into a flame, but now that flame was nowhere to be seen. "Yang would probably prefer your face to be the first thing she sees when she wakes up anyway."

Zwei stomped his paws while Blake stared, light pink tinting her cheeks. "You think this is the time for that? Just cause she can't throw people around with lightning and shake the ground when she walks doesn't mean she's no good!" Nora fixed the corgi with a glare.

"I didn't say that! Someone needs to look after the Captain!"

Ignoring the canine beside her, and the stirrings she felt in her stomach, Blake clenched her fists, fixing the demigod before her with a determined glare of her own. Bright yellow stared unwaveringly into electrified blue, as the princess decided to be stubborn rather than selfish, for Yang's sake. "You expect me to sit here and do nothing?! Yang is gravely injured because of me! I cannot just stand by while people keep risking their lives for my sake… not when I can…"

A blast of lightning from Nora's hand promptly silenced the Faunus, the ginger's features twisted into a scowl. "Now don't kid yourself!" she shouted, "The captain may have just risked _everything_ for you!" Blake let out an inaudible gasp, stepping backwards from the smoking scorch marks on the cobblestone. "It may not seem like it, but she's always been like that… it's who she is… trust me I should know."

Her ears twitched. "What do you mean?" she muttered, the armored Sin of Envy looking down at her white boots once again.

Yang was not the type of person who thought before they acted. Sure, she could smile and be polite when faced with the need to do so, but when it came to fighting, and defending her comrades or anyone she cared for… the Dragon Sin would not think twice to throw herself into harm's way to protect that person, even if it meant endangering her own life.

Nora sighed, fingering the hem of her skirt in deep thought. Yang was the perfect blend of reckless and selfless, never putting herself before others, but also never thinking before she dove into the fray of battle. Even if who she was protecting was a complete stranger, who did not deserve her trust, she would give it her all to stand between them and adversity.

"It was back when I left my hometown…" she explained, recalling how she had hastily packed a bag with reddened eyes and exhausted muscles, haphazardly throwing anything she grabbed into it before disappearing into the wilderness. She did not like to think about what had brought about her sudden leave, but she did like to remember what had happened in the weeks that followed. "I had just started traveling, on my own… and got into this stupid argument with some knights along the way."

She had been younger back then, only a decade short of four-hundred and fifty years old, and at the time not in any mood to deal with knights who kept her from going on her way. They had recognized her by the insignia emblazoned on her back; the mark of Thor himself, and had proclaimed her an enemy. It was annoying to be accused of crimes she didn't commit, and when she had rightfully defended herself with her lightning, the knights had resorted to calling her mean names like Witch or Demon-Spawn.

Honestly, _they_ were the ones in the wrong, drawing their swords on a cute girl the way they did, and name-calling was pretty pathetic coming from a race that was only powerful in large numbers. She had voiced these thoughts to them with a smug grin, and of course, they had tried to gang up on her after that, their poor pride wounded by a small ginger-haired girl.

Nora hadn't been afraid of them in the least, but she was still surprised when a blond woman in a long brown coat appeared out of thin air, beating the knights into the dirt with seemingly no effort whatsoever. The knights had challenged her too, but Yang had scolded them for attacking a little girl and being jerks about it, suggesting they apologize. They had puffed out their chests and threatened her, but the larger woman had broken through their steel with her bare fists, making them retreat with their tails between their legs.

Once they were gone, she had asked if Nora was okay, if they had scared her or if she needed any help getting to the next town. Of course, she hadn't known what to say to her strange savior, it was the first time anyone had ever treated her as if she was exactly the same as any other girl. Like she was human, and not the spawn of a human and a god. For the first time in her life, she felt the smallest bit… normal. Nora knew it wasn't true, and that she'd never be like other human girls, but for a moment… it felt nice to believe that she could be.

"I'm not as brave as you princess, or as determined to protect the people of this kingdom." She said, never breaking eye contact with the Faunus girl. "I can't let you put yourself in danger for me when the captain needs you more, but I _can_ fight with everything I have so that you won't have to!" she clenched her fists tight, her metal gloves crackling and popping with barely contained static energy.

Blake did not answer her right away, a pause stretching between the two girls before the black-haired princess broke it. "I only wish there was more I could do, to help you fight the Holy Knights." She sighed, her bow twitching as her gaze moved slightly to the window where she had just been with Yang, tending to her injuries, as she should have been from the beginning, instead of trying to convince herself that she was needed elsewhere.

"I wish I was born from ordinary human parents," Nora whispered, tugging on a loose thread at the end of her skirt and wincing slightly when it easily snapped under her strong fingers.

Blake could not find the words to answer that, having only now learned more about the Serpent Sin in five minutes than she knew about Yang herself in the near month they had been together. Rather than fight her on it any longer and delay their mission, the dark-haired Faunus decided to stay where she was and help her blond comrade. Her own selfish vengeance could wait, and none of the other Seven Deadly Sins were ever going to be found if their leader succumbed to her injuries because Blake wasn't there to tend to them.

Suddenly, her ears began to twitch and flick sporadically, her enhanced hearing noticing a distinct fuzz in the air. It was clouding her other senses, and growing louder the more she strained to listen. It almost sounded like… buzzing?

Nora could hear it too, albeit not as vividly, but their sights were drawn out into the distance, towards a structure that was no doubt Baste Prison. A pitch-black cloud seemed to be hovering over the entire tower, writhing and humming ominously. "What is that?" Blake whispered, not believing it to quite be a cloud, but not knowing what it could be otherwise.

People on the streets began to notice the unease in the air, turning their heads and muttering to each other in confusion. All save for Yang's doctor, who only placed a hand on his nurse's shoulder, silently telling her not to worry and all would be set right.

"I don't know… but it looks like it's coming from Baste Prison!" the cloud began to buzz louder as it drew closer to the city, reshaping itself a hundred times over as if it were alive somehow. It moved with such speed that Blake did not realize exactly what this was until it was right over them.

The cloud… no, the _swarm_ began to block out the sun as the hoard of insects began to descend upon the town. "They're… insects!" the princess cried, able to see them more closely now. They were not like any other bug she had seen before; each one alight with magical power contained in their exoskeletons. "Look out! They're poisonous!" Blake threw her arms out and shouted to the townspeople, urging them loudly to run or get inside quickly as the hoard rained down their spurs of venomous toxins. Each drop melted through the stone-paved ground, some of the bugs were even strong enough to rip buildings from their foundation within minutes!

Dalmally became chaos. People shouting and running as they attempted to escape the swarm with their lives, acid rained down from the sky like a plague, and Blake winced at the sight of a fountain in the square. A stone statue of the Summer Maiden, a deity to this part of Liones, melting into a smoking puddle as if she were made of ice left in the sun. "Could Baste Prison be behind this?!" she yelled to Zwei as the two ran for cover.

"This is definitely a Holy Knight if I ever saw one!" the corgi yipped, barely moving to dodge a heavy droplet of acid.

Blake cursed under her breath. "Nora! We'll lead them to you, use your lightning!" she called, but the Sin of Envy seemed completely unresponsive, she did not even appear to be moving out of the way of the insects.

The armored girl bent down, huddling with her head buried in her legs as she screamed. A terrified shriek that came from deep in her chest. " _I hate bugs! I can't stand them! Someone please help me!"_

Blake and Zwei could only stare at the aforementioned _demigod_ before them, cowering like a small child at the mere sight of a meager bug she could easily incinerate with her power.

 _"What?!"_

* * *

 **Hi there! Been some time hasn't it? Well don't worry, I won't be dropping this story until either RWBY or the Seven Deadly Sins drops dead! And with the new volume up and running i'm simply TEAMING with ideas for this story! Like perhaps making Vernal one of the Ten Commandments... hm? Anyway, I digress, I hope you're still enjoying this and your reviews give me life! Ciao!**


	15. Chapter 14: An Uncaged Bird

**Chapter 14: An Uncaged Bird**

Miltia giggled with absolute childlike glee as she spun and twirled, armed with her crimson claw-blades in a deadly dance she used to call and control her swarming insect familiars. "Come on my adorable scarabs! Give them a taste of your _Rain Capriccio!_ " she grinned mischievously as her hoard moved at her beck and call, raining down deadly acid upon the townspeople of Dalmally.

* * *

Having not been given any other choice, Blake scooped Zwei into her arms before taking cover in a stone sewer gate, but even that did not appear as if it would outlast the acid storm. The melting bricks did provide some protection at the very least, and would give her some time to think of a way to escape this attack.

Zwei whimpered in her arms, his ears constantly twitching and flicking from the buzzing insects all around them. "They'll wipe out the whole town at this rate!" he yelped, biting his stub tail as a vermilion beetle attempted to sink its stingers into the corgi's flesh.

Blake tried in vain to shut it all out; the bugs, the panicking townspeople, even Zwei. To try to force herself to think of a way out, but her thoughts kept pulling back to the Holy Knights, how they were the only ones powerful enough to launch an attack of this caliber. Her feline ears perked up, remembering the comatose Dragon Sin of Wrath still condemned to bed, and fully exposed to the Holy Knights this way.

"Yang…" Blake scanned the streets, finding the doctor's home quickly and not hesitation to run out from their hiding place towards the front entrance.

She failed to protect Yang once, she would not fail again.

Zwei yipped after her, too afraid to give chase but still concerned for the princess. "Blake, wait!"

Miltia let out a cackle of overgrowing elation as she saw the Faunus girl dart out into the fray. "I'll dissolve her with the _rest_ of the town!" her precious familiars followed the wave of her claws, flying towards the feline princess and preparing to strike down on her.

Before they could however, the echoing rumble of thunder vibrated above the swarm. Despite her fear, and despite her shaking fists, Nora pushed herself to her feet and stared into the hive. Unshed tears shining in her hard turquois eyes.

"I might hate bugs… but if it means helping the princess and the captain… then I won't let _anything_ get in my way!" she threw both of her opened hands into the air, a vein of lightning snaking down from the sky to her palms. The demigod tightened her fists and slammed them both into the earth, the lightning taken into her body thrusting itself outwards in every direction. The streets became a spider web of electricity as Nora unleashed her power on every insect in sight.

Once the ringing vibrations quieted down and the lightning faded away, every bug had been reduced to a smoking green stain on the streets and buildings of the town, yet surprisingly no civilians were hurt. Nora had used her power to target only Miltia's familiars, and once the lightning she carried left her body, the bugs didn't stand a chance.

Blake leaned against the doctor's home, her ears pressed down against her head by her hands as both they and her human ears rung painfully. Being within such close proximity to the might of a demigod was enough to stun the poor Faunus, but fortunately, her hearing returned to normal after a few minutes.

"Was that… Nora's power?" she asked to no one in particular.

"She took out all the bugs at once… whoa." Zwei scurried out from their previous hiding place, seeing it safe to emerge thanks to the Serpent Sin of Envy.

The ginger-haired Valkyrie tapped her fist against her heart, a look of determination on her face as she looked out at the looming form of Baste Prison. "Now, bring it on! I'll squash every last one of those things!"

The clawed Holy Knight clicked her tongue in disdain, raking her weapon against a nearby rock with a deafening screech. "I guess I should've expected that…" she tsked.

"Hey! Teach _me_ how to do that trick of yours!" Zwei barked as he bounded towards Nora, only to nearly be roasted as she used another lightning strike to propel her upwards. The bolt carried her until she dropped just outside the town's edge, glaring at the prison with static sparking at her fingertips.

"Look after the captain, alright princess?" Blake did not reply before the girl took off running towards Baste Prison, her power giving her an extra boost of speed along the way.

A layer of dust and dirt settled over Dalmally, and the princess did not give the Serpent Sin another worried thought before she made a dash for the doctor's home to see if Yang was better or worse.

She did not know which thought made her heart race faster.

Blake made quick work of the stairs, taking two at a time with each step as her pulse pounded in her ears. It was known that Yang was strong, possibly the strongest person she had ever met, but the venom of those insects had melted through stone and concrete like it was mere ice held up to a flame. She felt disgusted at the image of what it could do to flesh and bone.

By the time she made it to the blond's door, the doctor was already checking up on her. Blake almost wept with relief; other than still being comatose, Yang was more or less unscathed. The older woman looked to be sleeping peacefully, her golden hair gathered into a large ponytail most likely by one of the nurses. The black-haired Faunus could not see Yang ever wearing her hair up of her own accord, but the change of look did catch her eye.

She returned to the chair she had pulled to her comrade's bedside, letting out a shaky breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding until now, so tempted to touch Yang's hand or her hair, just to convince herself she was really alright.

The doctor gave her a kind if not sympathetic smile, "I was just checking on how our patient was doing."

"Hard to believe she's still out cold after all that racket outside." Zwei commented, but Blake ignored him, giving the doctor a grateful smile in return.

"If it weren't for your medicine she would probably be out of bed and making her injury worse," she said, amusement teasing at the back of her throat in the form of a small giggle. "She's sleeping so well,"

Quite well, in fact, if not for the faint rise and fall of her chest, one would speculate that the brawler looked more dead than alive. Her normally rosy and sun-kissed complexion was pale and dotted with beads of sweat despite the effects of the medicine, and her breathing seemed to be slowing down the more she slept. Blake wanted to believe it was just the effects of the medicine, but she had never seen any medicine that worked like this.

" _My deepest condolences…_ " the doctor whispered, guilt laced through his every word.

Feline ears flicked, and Blake's yellow eyes widened as her pupils shrunk in horror. She rose from her chair so quickly that it knocked over onto its side in her scuffle, her hand flung out and she pressed her fingers into the crook of Yang's neck, finding her pulse to be alarmingly fast and erratic. Blake couldn't breathe, she couldn't think, her mind plagued only by the fact that the doctor she had trusted with her friend's life had just betrayed them. _Why?!_

A mocking laugh cut through the room like a knife.

 _"Great job Doctor! It looks like you finished the job nicely."_ A female voice smirked.

Blake's fists clenched at her sides. "Who's there?!" she demanded, venomous anger dripping from her cracked voice.

"Belladonna… the flower of Liones's royal family, beautiful but among the most deadly poisons in the world… I'm afraid this girl will never wake up again." The doctor explained, opting to turn away from the princess's murderous gaze.

"You poisoned someone seeking your help? You're a doctor, why would you do this?!" she shouted, her hand itching to take hold of Gambol Shroud and teach this bastard a thing or two about betrayal. The doctor could not look his princess in the eye, instead falling to his knees and shaking like a coward.

The woman's voice from before only laughed, _"Even with all our power, we knew it would be impossible to take on one of the Seven Deadly Sins and come out alive… besides, the kingdom made it clear we could use any means necessary…"_

"Who are you?! Show yourself now!" Blake had had enough. She was tired of the games these Holy Knights were playing, because that's all this was; playing with people's lives and forcing them into situations that drive them to thievery, betrayal, even murder, all for the sake of their own amusement. It was just a _game_ to them.

The empty space in front of her shimmered and broke apart like a clearing fog, revealing a Holy Knight woman in white. She wore a dazzling white chiffon dress, her opalescent armor doing little to fracture her omnipotent beauty. Her jade green eyes fizzled with mischief and her smirk curled like that of a feral cat stalking a mouse from the underbrush.

"A pleasure to meet you…" she purred. "I am the Holy Knight Melanie Malachite, member of the Weird Fangs." The woman now known as Melanie introduced as she drew her eyes over Blake's body from head to toe as if examining a fascinating piece of prey.

The Faunus felt her ears flatten as a growl rose in her throat. "A Holy Knight…"

Melanie gave a small curtsy, her formality dripping with amusement as she mocked the presence of her kingdom's princess. "Princess Blake Belladonna, I have been sent to bring you home, and hope you'll come without a fuss." If her words were meant to be some sort of comfort, Blake solidly believed they fell flat.

As much as she hated to admit it, the princess was cornered with nowhere to go. Yes, she knew how to fight, but her aura was relatively weak compared to the Holy Knights she has seen thus far; a droplet of rain against a raging sea of raw power, and with Yang injured, and poisoned to near death… she could not think of a way out.

For the first time since she began her journey, Blake felt completely and utterly trapped.

* * *

Within the walls of Baste Prison, an eerie silence had settled over the guards as well as the prisoners. They had been hearing the rumors, the whispers of Yang Xiao Long and Nora Valkyrie coming to storm the prison to break free the Sin of Greed whose name they had all long forgotten. No contact with the outside world tended to blur the vision of current events.

"Hey, who do you think'll win?" one of the guards muttered.

His comrade, stationed beside him as they guarded the thick steel doors that stood between them and the dreaded Fox Sin. "Hm?" he asked.

"The Weird Fangs or the Seven Deadly Sins, they're fighting in town right now."

"That's not much of a bet," he scoffed, he knew the stories, hell he grew up hearing about the all-powerful Sins, but having seen what the Weird Fangs could do and how mercilessly they could do it, he didn't hold out much hope for the criminals. "From what I heard, the Sins are just down to their captain and one other member… they're no match for four active-duty Holy Knights…"

 _"Well that's awesome news!"_ a new voice cut in, startling the guards. They both gasped, having both realized that the only place the voice could have come from was inside the cell they were guarding. They sounded amused and even _excited_. " _Sounds like it ought to be fun!"_

The guards backed away slowly from the door, hands flying to their weapons as the abrasive voice echoed through the metal barrier. An echo that was quickly overshadowed by the near deafening clang of snapping iron as the prisoner threw a punch into the door, leaving a very prominent fist-shaped dent in the surface. The door that once kept the Deadly Sin from escaping now seemed like a mere parchment in the face of his true strength, falling to the floor in a bang that reverberated throughout the halls of Baste Prison.

The thin layer of dust that had settled inside the pitch-black cell fanned out around the silhouette of the man calmly exiting his former confinement. The guards gaped in horror as the criminal kept dormant for five years strode out of his cell like it was child's play, bloody lacerations and marks of former impalement littering the man's bare chest, arms, and feet as his broken chains jangled against the stone floor.

"N-no way…" one of the guards stammered.

His black hair hung around his shoulders as he stretched, groaning with each pop and crack of unused muscles. "Man… feels so good to walk around after all this time." He said, barely taking notice of the massive iron nail still lodged in his arm as he ran his free hand through his shaggy hair.

The guards were literally shaking now, not believing that the one they had guarded for so long now walked free.

 _"The Seven Deadly Sins' Qrow Branwen, the Fox Sin!"_

A smirk played across his lips, the mock-knights pushing down their fear to grab ahold of their weapons. "Damn you… how'd you get out of there!" one demanded. "And why now?"

Scarlet eyes rolled with boredom. "Isn't it obvious?" he asked, grasping the nail embedded in his flesh before pulling it out as if it were no more than a simple splinter. "I kicked the door down… and as for why… it's cause you were talking about some totally interesting stuff." Qrow raised his shackled wrist, smashing it against the stone wall behind him and smiling when the shattered pieces clinked onto the ground. "You said she was _alive_ … _our Captain._ "

The guards flinched when he kicked the remains of his chains towards them, almost chuckling at their supposed _Holy Knight Apostate_ status.

Of course, someone had to come and interrupt the fun however. "What's all this commotion?"

Qrow turned slightly to see a young girl striding down the corridor in a getup most fitting of a Holy Knight Apprentice, with mint green hair cut short and a pair of blades at her hips. "Emerald!" one of the guards called out, more or less intimidated despite her short stature.

The Apprentice regarded the Fox Sin as if he were a bug stuck to her polished armor, and not the skilled and experienced fighter he actually was. "Qrow Branwen of the Seven Deadly Sins, I don't know how you escaped your cell but return there at once." She ordered, seemingly unaware of who she was talking to.

Qrow scoffed, "How about some respect kid," he said as he scratched his beard, it had really gotten wild since he was locked up. "I'm not sure how you were raised, but is that any way to talk to a hero?"

Emerald lowered her gaze, annoyed more than anything by his audacious attitude. "I am an Apprentice Holy Knight, you _dare_ call me kid? That's pretty disrespectful for a prisoner who is at death's door." The red-eyed man only shrugged, the nonchalant disregard of her sending white fury into her clenched fists. "Go to Lady Melanie and the others, tell them Emerald had to take down the Fox Sin when he escaped and tried to resist."

The guards didn't hesitate to obey her orders and run off like dogs with their tails between their legs, not among other things. Emerald was scanning her opponent, waiting for the perfect chance to strike him down like the bug he was, while Qrow just seemed unimpressed, looking at her as if wondering if she would actually have the gall and or stupidity to take him on one on one.

With speed to rival a fully-fledged Holy Knight, Emerald took hold of her sickle blades and pounced on the Sin of Greed, cutting and slicing across every vein and artery before pulling back to admire her work, reveling in his cry of pain. Only she was not met with a bloody heap of a man on the ground, only a chuckling old crow with clumps of black hair littered around his feet.

He gave her a look that made her skin crawl, "Do you think I had you take off too much?" he asked, feeling the rough stubble left on his face as well as the feathery locks he loved to brush back before a good fight. "Well, it feels pretty good… so I guess I'm okay with it."

Emerald could not believe her eyes, but Qrow seemed content to tease her with her failure to end his life. "You've got some real talent there kid, you could be a barber." He laughed.

Cherry red eyes blinked, flabbergasted that he took the blunt of her attack yet still came out unscathed. "You dodged by blades even with all those injuries?"

The Fox Sin looked at her like she was out of her mind. "Injuries?" he gestured to his body, completely free of blood, wounds, or even scars, as if they were never even there to begin with. "What're you talking about?" he even moved his arms to mimic a bird flapping its wings to test out his unharmed appendages.

Emerald only stared as she took a fearful step back. "Impossible… minutes ago you were still full of holes from steel spikes through your body…" abilities like this were not natural, even for a Holy Knight.

Qrow smirked, feeling every ounce of her fear like a rich wine stewing in his gut. "It'd be good if you remembered this kid…" the green-haired girl was actually starting to shake from her fear. He pointed to the only scar marring his flesh; a jagged and twisted line across his abdomen, the skin slightly pinker than the rest with small purple speckles along the ruined tissue.

"There's only _one_ wound on me, and it's this one right here… got it?"

Emerald gulped, feeling like a block of lead had been dropped in her stomach.

"So you could say that injuries I get from _that guy_ are kind of a special case… I guess…"

The purple droplets beneath his flesh seemed to jolt and move inside the scar tissue, itching like his tattoo. Pushing him, urging him to start moving.

* * *

 **To go on record In case there was confusion, Yang did not give Qrow his scar, if you caught the clues, then you already know who did. That is all! Ciao!**


	16. Chapter 15: Even if You Should Die

**Chapter 15: Even If You Should Die**

 _The wounds inflicted on Yang Xiao Long by the Holy Knight Adam Taurus were much more serious than they thought…_

 _Blake Belladonna devotedly tended to her injuries in the town of Dalmally, where they had traveled to rescue a third member of the Seven Deadly Sins,_

 _Qrow Branwen, the Fox Sin of Greed, who is being held in Baste Prison._

 _However, she was forced to step aside from the battle, allowing Nora Valkyrie, the Serpent Sin of Envy to fight in her stead._

 _Four Holy Knights, the Weird Fangs, prepare to strike._

 _Qrow escaped from his prison, and then as Yang lay sleeping…_

* * *

 _"Who are you?! Show yourself now!" Blake had had enough. She was tired of the games these Holy Knights were playing, because that's all this was; playing with people's lives and forcing them into situations that drive them to thievery, betrayal, even murder, all for the sake of their own amusement. It was just a game to them._

 _The empty space in front of her shimmered and broke apart like a clearing fog, revealing a Holy Knight woman in white. She wore a dazzling white chiffon dress, her opalescent armor doing little to fracture her omnipotent beauty. Her jade green eyes fizzled with mischief and her smirk curled like that of a feral cat stalking a mouse from the underbrush._

 _"A pleasure to meet you…" she purred. "I am the Holy Knight Melanie Malachite, member of the Weird Fangs." The woman now known as Melanie introduced as she drew her eyes over Blake's body from head to toe as if examining a fascinating piece of prey._

 _The Faunus felt her ears flatten as a growl rose in her throat. "A Holy Knight…"_

 _Melanie gave a small curtsy, her formality dripping with amusement as she mocked the presence of her kingdom's princess. "Princess Blake Belladonna, I have been sent to bring you home, and hope you'll come without a fuss."_

* * *

Melanie Malachite held out a delicate hand for the princess, but it was quickly slapped away as Blake growled.

"If you expect me to go with you, then you're going to have to _make_ me."

The Holy Knight kept her smile, though it did twitch downward with a dangerously playful glint in her eye. "Very well then…" she purred, reaching for Yang as she slept in her bed and ripping the sheets away from her body.

The blond woman slept silently, most of her clothes removed and revealing hardened muscles gained from years of combat. Bandages bound around her bust were the only pieces of fabric keeping her decent, but Melanie cared little for modesty.

No, her eyes lustfully gazed upon the black iron gauntlets around Yang's wrists. The ruby-eyed ravens gleaming in the light and making her stomach tingle with pleasurable anticipation.

"I suppose it's pointless for you to keep these pretty things any longer," she mewed as she lifted the sleeping woman's arm, brushing her fingers against the darkened metal. "So I'll just take them for myself."

She gave the gauntlet a hefty tug, but was unpleasantly surprised when the broken garb held strong around Yang's wrist. Melanie glared down at the Dragon Sin; mocking her strength and reveling in her victory over her… but even when cornered by defeat… the woman just did not know when to _quit._

* * *

 ** _Twelve Years Ago_**

The sky was painted with a mosaic of stars, each one sparkling like a prized jewel against a dark canvas. Yang sipped her mead while poking at the dying embers of the group's campfire. Only she and the Fox Sin Qrow remained awake, their secluded campsite echoed with crackling wood and Nora's quiet snores. The Sin of Greed far exceeded her alcohol intake, and his cheeks were pink from his drunkenness as his speech slurred and his steps wavered.

"Come _on_ Captain!" he garbled, the mug of booze in his hand sloshing around as Qrow stumbled to his leader's side. "What's the big deal? Just show me your weapon already!"

He plopped down onto the log next to Yang, poking at her gauntlets as a common thief pokes at cheap trinkets not worth their time and effort. The blond woman finished off her mug before giving her comrade a look.

"Why are you so interested in these old hunks of junk?" she asked. Qrow's crimson eyes narrowed in on the blackened metal, more specifically the ravens engraved into the iron, their scarlet gems for eyes staring back into his own matching ones.

He sniffed, "Well, last I checked, you were the Captain of the Seven Deadly Sins, so… why the hell are you walking around with a set of gauntlets like _that_?" he pointed to the broken clasps, the only thing keeping them around Yang's wrists being sheer coincidence at best. "I mean… did you really think I wouldn't be _curious_ about it?"

Yang shrugged, swirling her last sip around in her mug, only for Qrow to latch a tight grip onto her arm, holding it close to his gaze for inspection. "Come on…" he urged, "Just let me have a little peek?"

The Dragon Sin dropped her mug, clenching her free hand into a fist around Qrow's collar, a look in her eye he had not seen before. "Let go… Uncle."

The corner of his mouth twitched; she so rarely called him that in the presence of the other Sins, but since Nora was soundly sleeping and the others were scouting ahead, she must have been serious about him backing off. A sane man would have let the subject drop, but Qrow knew his niece was hiding something.

Something out of the corner of his eye moved, their conversation must have woken Nora, as she was rubbing the sleep from her eyes and yawning. "Hey you two… you still up?" she asked groggily, not fully comprehending the tension between her teammates.

Yang's grip tightened. "Just let it go Qrow, I don't want to get angry with you."

"Angry?" he smirked, "You serious? We've been hanging together for a lot of years now… and in all that time I've never seen you get mad once."

He saw a flash of something in her lilac eyes, something _burning_ beneath the surface. " _I mean it._ " She growled.

Her Uncle ignored her. "That reminds me… I'm also interested in knowing how you ended up getting called the _Dragon Sin of Wrath…_ "

Nora finally sensed the air of broiling tension, "H-hey, maybe you should back off a little, huh Qrow?" she suggested, prepared to step in a separate the two if need be.

Her suggestion went on disregarded, and Qrow tugged on his niece's arm to bring the gauntlet closer to his scathing red vision. "If doing this means I'll get to see what you're like when you're angry, then I want to see it even more… no… _I want to steal it_."

Something snapped then, a thinly strung restraint keeping Yang from lashing out, she drew her fist back and punched her uncle square in the jaw all before he could even blink. Qrow almost grinned as he managed to catch a glimpse of the gleam in the raven's eyes as Yang's fist broke his teeth and threw him across the camp. He managed to skid to a stop, his mouth gargling blood as it dripped down his chin to paint the dirt a shining ruby red.

"Hehe…" he chuckled, already feeling his teeth regrow in his jaw, wiping the blood from his mouth and smearing more red onto his sleeve. "Well what do you know… looks like I just found a new side of you… interesting…"

Yang did not share his casual attitude, staring down at her boots instead of making fun of him like she normally did when she landed a hit on him.

" _Sorry about that Qrow,_ " she whispered, her eyes hidden by her golden bangs. " _But… my weapon is…"_

* * *

" _Stop! Get away from her!_ " Blake pulled her katana from her back, swiping at Melanie as the Holy Knight attempted to take Yang's weapon from her own cold, unconscious body.

The woman in white only sneered, catching Blake's blade and throwing the princess into the wall with a loud thud. She cried out as the air was pulled from her lungs, sliding down the wall as her aura attempted to reverse the damage Melanie's strength had inflicted upon her.

With the princess subdued for the moment, Melanie gave Yang's wrist another hard tug, and the black gauntlet on her wrist sprung free. Its twin released the sleeping woman's arm shortly after, and Melanie absolutely gushed with glee at the weapons clutched in her palms. "It's _mine_ now!" she squealed. "You have no use for it,"

She _reveled_ in her victory, and while the unconscious state of the powerful Sin somewhat soured it, Melanie almost salivated at the feel of the gauntlets in her palms. The mighty weapon of the Sin of Wrath would surely win her more notches in her belt and infinite respect among other, weaker Holy Knights.

However, what she failed to notice was the thick tar-like energy oozing from Yang's body. Blake stared in shock as the dying Sin rose from her bed, lilac eyes hidden by her golden hair, and grasped Melanie's wrist as if she were a coiling snake gripping tighter and tighter as she rose to her feet. The doctor gasped in horror,

"I-impossible! No one could survive so much poison!"

Melanie ignored the growing pain in her arm, and sneered. "Too stubborn to die as always… but this weapon is _mine!"_ she attempted to rip her arm from Yang's grip, but the dark energy surrounding the blond woman only seemed to grow stronger the longer she held the Sin's weapon. A black smoke ebbed from her as it pushed against the Holy Knight, the pressure increasing until she felt her skull would burst. Still, she refused to let go.

A voice cut through the blackness, a venomous whisper that sent a chill down her spine.

" _Even if I die… this weapon is the one thing I'll never let go of… it's the only thing I can do… **The only way I can ever atone!**_ "

Blake leaned her weight against the wall, standing but still weak as her aura repaired her bruised body but not her strength. She never broke her gaze with Yang, confused and fearful of what the woman was doing, of what she was generating. She had never felt such dark power before, and in cast the Dragon Sin in a far more intimidating light.

Yet all Melanie did was laugh, "Spout all the nonsense you want, this weapon and the princess still belong to **_me!_** "

Yang looked into Melanie's eyes then, bright jade not meeting lilac, but a _burning, monstrous_ red that resembled fire and blood bubbling beneath the surface. She felt the air leave her lungs as the full weight of Yang's power resonated against her own. It made the woman in white seem like a mouse in the presence of a dragon; Melanie had never felt evil or fear like this before. She held her own until she gazed upon the crimson eye branded on Yang Xiao Long's forehead, a symbol she knew all too well as the talons of fear finally punctured her weak grandeur.

Feeling sick and breaking under the power, Melanie released the gauntlets and shattered the window with her bladed foot, never being as grateful for air as she was in that moment. She hit the ground running; not daring to look back as she escaped what was surely her death waiting for her.

The Holy Knight disappeared into the city, and the room fell into a disturbing silence.

"She… got away?" Zwei said to no one, only looking out the window as Blake's hand drifted to the hilt of her sword.

She had no idea what had just happened, even if it was right before her eyes, but Yang was not moving or speaking and yet still held a tightness in her shoulders. "Yang? Are you… okay?" Blake reached a steady hand out to her, nearly shaking from the lingering tension.

There was no way to tell how the Sin of Wrath would react to the princess's touch, and yet, as soon as Blake's hand brushed Yang's bare shoulder, the spell broke. The blond turned to her Faunus companion with soft lilac eyes, and smiled.

"I'm okay, hey Blake, hey Zwei!" she greeted with a sunny and cheerful grin on her face. Blake let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding, it was good to see her acting like her old self again, having been recovering from her wounds. However, the amount of poison she had been given should not have been survivable, it made her think that perhaps the legends about the incomprehensible power of the Seven Deadly Sins was even less to scoff at than it had already proven to be.

Yang looked around, finally noticing that the trio was not in fact still at the Crow Bar, but in fact somewhere completely new. "So, where are we exactly?" she asked, scanning over the shattered window and the carnage outside.

"The town of Dalmally," the princess explained. "It's the closest to Baste Prison,"

If Baste Prison was nearby then that meant Yang was one step closer to finding her uncle, she pondered what their reunion would be like as she refastened her gauntlets around her wrists. "Who was that weirdo from earlier?" it wasn't often that someone tried to take her own belongings off of her comatose body. Needless to say, she was a bit curious as to who wanted her gauntlets so bad to go as far as threatening a doctor into poisoning a seemingly innocent tavern girl.

Zwei scratched behind his ear with his stubby little foot. "A Holy Knight! She said her name was Melanie Malachite, and that quacked doctor was working with her!"

Yang tilted her head, confused by the corgi's outburst about a crooked doctor even though Blake was the only other person in the room. "What doctor?"

Her canine companion yipped, "He high-tailed it! Let's go!" Zwei made a bee-line for the entrance to try and sniff out the assailant, but a tight grip in his ear stopped him from moving more than two feet. Blake grasped the small dog with a look of unamused contempt on her face.

"Not so fast! Yang's injuries haven't fully healed yet!"

"That hurts…" he whimpered as the princess tugged his ear.

Lilac eyes turned to the bandages strewn across her chest and shoulder, and though there was a sort of itch beneath the gauze, she felt no supposed injury as her feline friend had described. Curiosity winning over logic, Yang slowly undid her bandages, discarding them to a coiled pile on the floor. Expecting to see gnarled scar tissue, the Sin of Wrath only blinked as she looked at the pale pink line tracing from her back to her collarbone. "Looks okay to me,"

She watched as Blake's features changed from annoyance to mortified shock. The princess placed a gentle but tentative hand over the small, almost unnoticeable scar that now marred Yang's skin. "It can't… that's impossible…" she muttered, checking the blond over multiple times before she was sure her mind wasn't fooling her.

The wound that had nearly killed her, was no more than a common cat-scratch now. Gold traveled upward until they met amethyst orbs colored with concern. "You okay Blake? You're being really forward today."

Realizing how close she was to the other girl, Blake felt her cheeks burn with embarrassment. She coughed into her hand and stepped away from her, "Sorry, that wasn't my intention."

Yang only smiled, "Hey, I'm not complaining about you feeling me up, you can touch my hot muscles as much as you want!"

The Faunus girl blushed even redder, snapping at the blond woman, "You know damn well it wasn't like that!" the other girl only burst out laughing, in very good spirits for someone who escaped death by Belladonna.

Poison or otherwise.

* * *

Melanie cursed the Dragon Sin, pouting about losing her chance to steal the legendary weapon of Yang Xiao Long. "I barely got out of there…" she grumbled.

The Sin of Wrath was known by every citizen of the Britannia empire, for treachery or splendor the legends of her power varied wherever you went. The Malachite twins grew up hearing such legends, but they did not listen in awe, no, they scoffed at such power. They hungered for it, wanted that kind of control for themselves. They trained all their lives to be formidable enough to rob the Dragon Sin of her power, and yet Melanie had to flee to avoid a no doubt gruesome death by her hand.

"So, _that_ was Yang Xiao Long's true power… I'm lucky to have escaped at the right time… interesting…" she purred, rubbing her chin as she shivered from the raw energy that pulsated from the Sin.

"You think so?" Melanie fell into a fighting stance at the sound of that voice. That oh-so annoying chime of Yang's equal mix of friendly and cocky.

The Holy Knight chuckled mockingly towards the freakish trio consisting of the Sin, the capital's princess, and a small dog. "I'm impressed, how'd you find me?"

The dog huffed, blowing steam from his nostrils. "My nose can track anyone!" he barked, standing as tall as he could muster to try to intimidate her. Not that it did any good; Zwei was one-eighth her size regardless.

Yang shook with laughter, but fell silent as her expression turned serious. Lilac eyes bore into Melanie's body, reminding her of when they had been that bloody shade of red not moments earlier. The memory sent an unwelcome chill of fear down her back. "Now, tell me who sent you to take my weapon and the princess." The blond demanded. "Or else I'll have to beat you black and blue."

The opalescent woman smirked as she raised her arms in defeat. "Of course, I surrender." Blake's ebony eyebrow arched at her words, not believing them for a second. "To be honest, I'm a coward by nature, I never cared for combat… specifically when my enemy is the captain of the Seven Deadly Sins."

A gleam out of the corner of her eye made Yang bring her fists up, effectively blocking two serrated blades that would have removed her head. Instead, they lodged into the cobblestone completely harmless. Blake and Zwei gasped, watching as the metal shimmered like a mirage in the sun.

"I let those blades loose when I raised my hands… how did you see them?"

Yang shrugged. "My eyes can spot cute kitty ears from miles away!"

The princess only scowled; now was not the time for such inappropriate jokes. She had learned from previous battles that Yang fought with her quick wit as much as her brute strength, often angering her opponent to the point of losing focus long enough for her to strike. It was not the most conventional method of combat yet it seemed far too affective in her case.

Blake's feline ears twitched, and she turned her head to see the doctor stumble into the street, panting with exhaustion but keeping himself upright using the wall of a nearby building. "There you are Lady Melanie, I've been looking for you!" he proclaimed. Sweat dripped from his brow as a mix of anger, shame, and guilt twisted his features. "I know I failed to end the girl's life… but I still poisoned her as you asked! A Deal is a deal, please return my daughter as you promised!"

Yang looked up at the supposed quack doctor, blinking once, than twice more as his words registered with her. Daughter?

Holy Knights had taken this man's daughter?

* * *

 **AHHHHHHHHh I feel so bad for not updating! But updates will be somewhat scarce in the future I'm sad to say, as my senior year is nearing its end and I will have to *shivers* get my life together... ANYWAY please forgive my hiatus and enjoy this chapter! Review and favorite as always! Ciao!**


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